Recipe for Disaster
by ChaosChain0
Summary: Stuck on Pandora with grifters, a traitorous friend, and a literal voice and body in his head - it's no wonder Rhys is having a bad day. Add to it glowing tattoos, a stun baton that likes to fling people in every direction, and Jack's growing tendencies to touch him, and you've got a recipe for disaster.
1. Pandoran Days

[Notes]

[This is very Rhys-centered so if you don't like him, this isn't the story for you. Sorry.

This is a story I wrote back in 2016 when I got really into Tales. It's sat on my computer at 29k words for two years now, and I haven't written much more to it. I've tried to come back to it but keep telling myself I'll update later and I never do. I want to try to, though. Maybe if you guys like it and want more I'll be motivated to update finally.

It diverges from cannon a bit. Quite a bit, actually. Just little-ish things that irked me, like them running after hacking Vasquez's car instead of stealing it like mature, thoughtful people. Minor stuff, I guess. Same basic plot but with some twists.

Edit: This is getting really AU. Diverging a bit from cannon - still basic 'look for pieces and find vault' bit but, well, differences. Hope that's okay.

Enjoy!]

xXx

Being stuck in someone's head is not what Jack expected out of life.

Being stuck in some code monkey's head is even worse, because it just reminds him of where he came from. Once upon a time he was just a lowly Hyperion programmer himself, after all; he rose in the ranks by taking what he wanted, murdering his way up the corporate ladder, and attempted to ignore the fact he started from such a low point.

But now he is stuck in a code monkey's head. A moral code monkey's head, too. He hasn't been in this guy's head for very long, but he's young and naive and worse, he's too moral. He doesn't want to kill people; Jack doesn't even have to be that far into his head or see him in action to know that. It's written all across his face every time he looks at it. That stupid face with the ECHO-eye and that stupid, slicked back hair. God, this kid's getting on his nerves and he's only been stuck in his head for not even one Pandoran day.

It makes him miss Helios. It's hard to count the hours in space, but he prefers that over the 90 hour days on Pandora, and just the general chaos of this place. This is such a lousy, no-good planet. He can't believe he ever wanted to save it in the first place. It would be better to just nuke it and go somewhere else. If there weren't vaults on Pandora, then maybe he would have done that ages ago. He should have.

But he can admit he was greedy and wanted what was in those vaults, so he tried to fix the planet. One would think the Pandorans would appreciate that; he was bringing order to them when before it was just completely chaos, but no, they decided to hate him for it and just become bandits.

He hates bandits.

At least, he decides, they are away from those two Pandoran girls – Fiona and Sasha, he thinks their names are, but he's never been good with names. Why bother? No one is worth his time except his daughter.

Angel.

For one brief moment, Jack thinks longingly of his daughter. He wonders where she is, if she's okay, if she thinks he's dead like apparently everyone else does on this crazy planet… He wonders if she's being looked after, but then realizes… who would watch out for her in his absence? It's not like he went around telling anyone about her. She was the best kept secret in Hyperion, and definitely the best kept secret on Pandora. The last he remembers – though it's all foggy, which is weird because he's a hologram so fog isn't really a thing, is it? – he was on working on getting the vault hunters to let him attack Sanctuary, their last little hideout with the resistance or whatever the fuck they're calling themselves.

But he's apparently been dead for six months. Apparently killed by said vault hunters six months ago, and that makes him worry about his daughter. He hates everyone, he really does – he might have tolerated Nisha, but he never told her about his daughter, because in the end it all came back to the fact Nisha is a bandit. She might be better than other bandits, taking down the bad ones, but she's still a bandit nevertheless, just one which benefited Jack for a while. And the sex was fucking great. Nisha was a naughty girl indeed.

But anyway, back to the hating people.

Because he does.

He hates everyone but himself.

Everyone but himself, and his daughter.

She is the only person he loves – the only person he's ever truly loved. Once upon a time he might have loved his mother, but then she ditched him to live with his grandmother. It was strange, as a kid – to have a home and a semi-normal life one moment, and then to suddenly have it taken away when he's dropped off on Pandora of all places, to live with a woman he's never met and barely even heard of.

His grandmother wasn't the best, to put it simply.

He still has the scars on his side from her buzz axe.

So he hated his mother after that, and never saw her again. Never learned what happened to her after she promised to come back and then didn't, but never bothered to look, either. Because he hated her. And he hated his grandmother.

He thinks he felt fond enough of his first wife, Angel's mom. She wasn't so bad. But then she went and died, leaving him alone to take care of a small, powerful Siren, and so yeah, a part of him hates her, too.

But Angel…

He loves Angel, even after what she did to her mom.

She was a child – innocent and sweet, and she didn't know what she was doing. She reminded Jack of a better time in his life, and he couldn't be mad at her for it. So he hid her away.

He told his next wife about her. There was a touch of something in that relationship, but Jack was never really fond of her. He just thought Angel could use a mother figure in her life, and after careful research, this woman seemed to fit the bill. Nurturing and kind, with experience with kids. Also, she was a teacher from Eden-6. So she could help with Angel's studies while Jack was busy with work, even though Angel was probably smarter than her, even at such a young age.

But then his wife went and betrayed him by suggesting they shut down the 'Angel-project', and yeah. He had to get rid of her. No one threatens his baby.

So he hid Angel even more. Hid her from absolutely everyone.

And now he's left wondering who might care enough to look after her. Who might care enough to find her, where he's hidden her. Angel's smart; she could probably break out if she was desperate enough, but then what? She has no friends, because no one can be trusted. Where would she go?

Jack needs to find her.

But first he has to get back to Helios, and get his own body. Get out of this guy's head. Whatever the fuck his name is. Ryan? Ren? Rhys? Rhys. His name is Rhys.

He thinks.

"Don't know what state of being I'm in now but, uh, walking still sucks," Jack says for what has to be the third time or so, but honestly, it does suck. He could just travel in Rhys' head, but it's awkward in there. Awkward because he's not really existing in there. It's more like he's sleeping, but there's no dreams. It's just like he stops existing for a while, and that's really unsettling, because he's not a ghost. He's not a hologram. He's not dead.

The heroes aren't supposed to die.

"So you've said," Rhys mutters, mostly under his breath, but his freakishly buff nerd friend looks over at him anyway. "Uh, sorry – Jack's being annoying."

The nerd frowns somewhat. Jack's still not a fan of the whole 'let's tell the buff nerd everything that's going on' plan of Rhys's, but there's nothing he can do about it right now. He has no power here; he's just a fucking hologram. Except he's not. Because he's not dead. Heroes don't die.

"Where are we going, anyway?" Rhys asks. "It's going to be getting dark soon, I think."

Jack snorts, but the kid's not completely wrong. The sun is setting, but with the 90 hour days here… yeah, it'll still be a few hours before it's completely set. Still, the temperature drops dramatically in the desert, at night, especially with Pandora's night cycle, and while Jack can't feel temperature, that doesn't quite mean he wants to be out in the cold. Mostly because these two losers will freeze to death.

Which, normally he'd be fine with, but he's kind of stuck with Rhys for the time being, so letting the kid die isn't good for his own well-being. So, there's that.

"What are we going to do at night?" the nerd asks, suddenly worried.

Earlier he was so excited to have lived a few moonshots, and a rakk hive. Now he's close to panicking and looking at Rhys like he knows what to do. Which is hilarious. Rhys is a stranger on Pandora; he knows nothing.

He's too moral to survive here.

"We'll manage," Rhys says. "Yvette knows where we are. She'll… do something, I'm sure, if we're in real trouble."

The kid sure places a lot of trust in this Yvette chick. That's going to be his downfall, Jack is sure. You can't trust anyone. You can only rely on yourself. One day he'll learn that lesson. Hopefully before he dies and takes Jack with him.

"You could… ask Jack, right?" the nerd asks timidly. "I mean – right?"

Rhys looks skyward for a moment. "90 hour days, huh? We still have a few hours before we have to really worry. Let's keep moving and see if we can find some shelter. And I still have my stun baton."

A baton is the kid's weapon of choice. Granted, Jack hasn't seen this baton in action, but it's a fucking baton, it won't do any good against guns. Christ, what has he gotten himself into? He looks skyward himself, toward the big H in the sky. He wants to go back there. It was never home, but at least it was better than Pandora.

Rhys seems to want to get back to Helios, too, so that's something, at least. Jack can work with that.

He's good at manipulating people, after all; so that's what he'll do. He'll manipulate Rhys into going back to Helios and giving Jack what he wants. And maybe Jack won't kill him after it's all over. Who knows?

More walking, and yeah, walking still sucks. Even if it's only because he's bored. They have no real set destination in mind, the deserts of Pandora are vast and wide, so it's not like they'll be out of here anytime soon, if they remain on foot. There's a flicker of worry deep inside, but he's not sure where it comes from. He's not worried about these losers, but if Rhys dies, then he dies, too.

So, that's something to think about.

xXx

They find a cave to stay in that night. It's cold and dark, but at least it's out of the open, and maybe a bit safer. Rhys isn't sure what to think of it; but again, at least it's out of the open. If they're going to be attacked, hopefully it won't be by bandits.

And that's really all one can hope for on Pandora.

They're both shivering, and Jack is nowhere to be seen for once, thank god.

For a hologram in his head, the guy can sure get annoying.

For one, he doesn't like being ignored, apparently, and constantly answering him gets tiring, especially with how Vaughn looks at him when he does it. He's not sure if Vaughn completely believes that Handsome Jack is indeed in his head, but maybe it doesn't really matter. Hopefully they can figure all of this out soon; someone on Hyperion will want AI Jack. Maybe they can use it as a bargaining chip if they really need to.

Thinking about it gives Rhys a headache, though.

Vaughn is shivering when Rhys waves his hand in his direction, the light emanating from his robotic palm allowing him to see his friend properly. He frowns; he doesn't like seeing Vaughn so uncomfortable.

"Think you'll be able to sleep tonight?" Rhys asks.

Vaughn shivers more, and shakes his head. "N-No," he says, teeth chattering.

Rhys has far more layers of clothing than the accountant does. He sighs and takes off his vest, handing it to the guy. It won't do much, but it will be big on him so maybe it will offer him at least some warmth. Vaughn eyes the vest carefully for a moment, before he accepts it with trembling fingers.

"Thanks," he says quietly.

Rhys shrugs and keeps his palm open so there's light in the small cave, and he sits carefully on the ground with his back against the cave wall. Vaughn sits a few feet away, still shivering, attempting to wrap the sleeveless vest around him as much as he can. Poor thing. Empathy shoots through Rhys and he sighs heavily.

"Come here."

Vaughn looks over at him, frowning. "Excuse me?"

"Come here," Rhys repeats. "I can't have you freezing to death, and at least one of us needs some sleep. I'll keep watch. Come here."

He's always had this protective instinct about Vaughn, though he's not sure why. Maybe because the guy was his first true friend; he doesn't know. All he knows is he can't stand to see his friend suffering like this, and he's going to fix it.

Vaughn hesitates, before the cold gets to him and he shuffles closer so he's right up next to Rhys. Rhys throws his flesh arm around his friend, pulling him into his side. Vaughn's shivering slowly subsides. Rhys smiles.

"Get some sleep," he says.

"You're a good friend," Vaughn says tiredly.

"I know, I'm awesome. Don't forget this when I'm grouchy in the morning."

Vaughn laughs sleepily, settling further against him. It's not the first time they've cuddled; they were roommates for a time, after all, and they fell asleep together on the couch more than once. But this is the first time they've done it purely for warmth.

It's a survival tactic, though.

"Aren't you two sweet," Jack says, causing Rhys to flinch.

Vaughn blinks his eyes open, waking very briefly, before he quickly drifts back off to sleep.

Rhys throws a glare at the hologram. "It's freezing, in case you haven't noticed."

"Is it?"

Rhys rolls his eyes. "Hologram."

Jack's eyes narrow. "Better watch your mouth, cupcake. Hate for something to happen to it."

"Do you have anything useful to say, or are you just here to bug me?"

"This is no walk in the park for me either, pumpkin," Jack says, rolling his eyes, managing to sound absolutely insufferable in a way only a hologram can. "I don't want to be here any more than you do. So you get me back to Hyperion and we'll get this sorted out, capiche?"

Rhys sighs. "Yeah, yeah, we'll get right on that when we're not blacklisted and stranded in the middle of the desert, thanks."

"Feisty, huh, cupcake?" Jack smiles, all teeth and no grin. "I like it."

"Please stop talking," Rhys says, feeling his face heat up. Thank god it's dark in the cave and Jack can't see him. "Where have you been, anyway?"

"Around," Jack says evasively.

Fine, don't tell me.

It's not like it matters.

He doesn't care anyway, of course.

" 's it Jack 'gain?" Vaughn mumbles into his shoulder, which he is using as a pillow.

Rhys sighs, glancing down at his friend's barely parted eyes. "Yep, Jack again. Go back to sleep, Vaughn."

" m'kay…"

He shakes his head, smirking faintly at his friend before he lets the light on his robotic palm die away.

With it, Jack disappears, and Rhys sets about keeping watch for the long Pandoran night.

xXx

Rhys falls asleep many hours later, when Vaughn wakes up 'refreshed' but sore, still curled into Rhys's side. Vaughn says he'll keep an eye on things if Rhys wants to sleep.

Rhys's eyes are already falling shut before he can fully agree with Vaughn's suggestion.

xXx

Vaughn falls asleep a few hours after that.

Jack is not amused. He's a hologram but he's stuck keeping watch, and he has no idea how to wake these idiots up should something happen. He has half a mind to just let them die, but then he'll die, too.

So. There's that.

Maybe if he focuses enough he can get into Rhys's head and wake him up.

Well. He's bored, so why not try to give the kid a headache?

xXx

Rhys's head is killing him.

It's the pain that wakes him, emanating from his neural port on the left side of his head. He groans and drags his flesh hand up to rub at it, grimacing. As he moves, Vaughn nearly topples to the side since Rhys was the one holding him up, even in his sleep. Vaughn catches himself with a jagged, shocked breath, hands splayed across Rhys' chest in an attempt to keep himself upright. For a moment they stare at each other, both in shock, before Vaughn quickly pulls away and Rhys blinks, rubbing at his head again.

Jack is laughing. He's very loud.

"Oh, this is perfect," Jack all but cackles. "You two losers are priceless."

"Rhys, you okay? You look pale…" Vaughn says, unaware of Jack's words and his loud laughter. Lucky him.

Rhys groans, closing his eyes. The sun has definitely come up, and while it's warmer, it's too bright right now. It hurts.

"Rhys?"

"I'm fine, just a headache," Rhys says before Vaughn can worry too much. If there's one thing Vaughn does well, it's worry. All the time. About everything. Especially his friends. Which isn't bad, but can be a bit… overwhelming, at times. Rhys swats Vaughn's probing hands away, blinking his eyes open despite the pain and the light. "I said I'm fine. I'm okay. Headache. Normal."

Jack's still laughing off in the corner, holographic blue form bent over so his hands are somehow not sliding through his knees.

Rhys throws him a glare. "What are you so giggly about, anyway?"

"How's your head feel, cupcake?" Jack asks with another laugh.

Rhys blinks at him, then narrows his eyes once more. "Wait a minute – are you saying you gave me this headache?"

Which, no. That's rude and painful and he's not happy about this, dammit.

"Well, I had to wake you up somehow, didn't I, pumpkin?" Jack asks, looking absolutely smug in all the blocky glory of a hologram.

"Rhys?"

Rhys blinks at his friend. "Sorry. Jack's being rude."

"You were both asleep; I had to wake you up," Jack says, crossing his arms over his chest like he's insulted at being called rude, which is a lie. Rhys knows for a fact Jack has been called a lot worse. "Good to know I can if I really have to, I suppose. But it wasn't fun for me either, cupcake."

"Stop calling me that," Rhys says.

"Huh?" Vaughn asks, utterly confused as Rhys pushes to his feet.

"Not you," Rhys tells him.

"Jack? What's he saying?" Vaughn asks.

"He keeps calling me…" Rhys hesitates. Telling Vaughn what Jack is calling him can't be a good idea, he's sure.

Jack is laughing again.

Damn it.

"What? What's he calling you?" Vaughn asks, curious.

"Nothing," Rhys tells him. "Alright – the sun is up. Let's keep moving. We need to get out of this desert."

Vaughn looks like he wants to argue, but he doesn't. He just snaps his mouth shut and follows Rhys out of the cave. Holo-Jack is waiting for him outside already, still snickering. Rhys throws him a glare and walks past him.

xXx

"Do you think the girls are okay?" Vaughn asks later.

Rhys sighs; it's not the first time Vaughn has asked, and while he admires the guy's loyalty and concern for the girls, answering him is getting tiring because Rhys doesn't know the answer. The last they saw of the girls, they were in the caravan, running from moonshots. Yvette said she got the moonshots to stop for the time being; hopefully that meant the girls are okay and got away.

But if they did… where are they? Are they really not going to come looking for them?

He knows they aren't exactly friends, but he likes to think that after what they've been through together so far, there's at least some loyalty –some concern, like Vaughn is exhibiting for them.

They entered a death race together, after all; they hunted down the money together. They entered an underground bunker together, and got pieces of the 'Gortys Project', what ever that is. Which might lead to a vault.

But Rhys still has his piece; Fiona has hers.

So if they want to get to the vault they're going to at least need Rhys's piece. So they'll have to come find them eventually, right?

"I'm sure they're fine," Rhys says as they keep walking.

"Boring," Jack huffs. "I'm so bored. You two are boring."

Rhys tries to ignore him.

Jack does not like being ignored. At all.

"Aw, c'mon, cupcake, don't be like that."

"Stop calling me cupcake!" Rhys hisses, practically stomping his foot in irritation, and Vaughn blinks at the sudden outburst. Rhys sucks in a breath and forces his posture to relax.

"Cupcake?" Vaughn asks.

"Don't ask," Rhys says, glaring at him. "Don't you even ask."

Vaughn holds his hands up harmlessly. "Wouldn't dream of it, bro."

"Good. Good. See that is stays that way." Rhys runs his robotic fingers through his hair in that nervous habit of his. "Alright. Let's keep going."

They begin walking again. Jack is still quietly laughing as he follows behind them.

Rhys ignores him as best he can.

xXx

Annoying Rhys is… well, it's not fun, but at least Jack isn't as bored as before. That's something, at least. Definitely something, because being bored sucks, especially when he literally can't do anything about it except give Rhys a headache.

Not that he doesn't want to give Rhys a headache. Because he does.

But he already did, and having the kid crippled in pain in the middle of the desert isn't such a great idea. See – Jack can think ahead. He knows better than to trust the desert, especially with these two idiots. He can't leave them alone and making the only semi-capable one of them – Rhys – unconscious with pain just isn't a good idea right now. Maybe later.

Maybe the buff nerd could surprise him, though.

He's surprised by the random muscles, of course, but that hardly means the nerd is okay in a fight.

He's too short to be even the least bit intimidating, even with that body.

Which Jack is totally not jealous of, but he was serious when he said he could never get that toned no matter how much he worked out. Saving the planet doesn't leave much time for the gym, after all.

And now he's comparing his body to a buff nerd, because he's bored, and there's this little part of his mind that wonders what Rhys looks like under all the layers. Is he buff, too? Did Jack just miss the memo that suddenly all his underlings are buff for no reason? Did they all somehow find time for the gym?

He doesn't know, but he's bored, and it's driving him crazy now.

"Rhysie," he says as sweetly as he can, which is just, ugh, sickening for him to do, but he does it nevertheless. Instantly, he has Rhys's attention, blue and brown eyes latching onto him, a suspicious twist to the kid's lips. Which is just rude, really. Jack can be nice if he wants to. He doesn't have to have a reason.

"What?" Rhys asks, frowning.

"Huh?" the nerd asks.

Rhys shakes his head, keeping his gaze on Jack.

The nerd takes the hint.

"You don't need to look at me like that, okay, cupcake?"

Rhys scowls. "Why do you insist on calling me that?"

"Sensitive, are we? Is it your time of the month, Rhysie?"

Rhys rolls his eyes, huffs, and turns away from Jack, stomping away like Jack won't immediately follow.

No, you know what? Jack won't follow.

Screw that guy.

He stops moving. It's strange. He can't feel the desert sand beneath him, but then he can't feel much of anything, really. There's like this electric hum going through his body, but that's really about it. He can phase through some things, but not others, it seems like. Like the ground, for instance. Yep, that's pretty solid. Not phasing through that.

The further away Rhys gets, Jack does start to feel something else.

It's not quite…physical, but if he had to compare it to something, it would be his throat closing up, his windpipe not wanting to work properly. A tight feeling somewhere. It reminds him vaguely of panic, or at least what he remembers panic to feel like. He hasn't felt that in a long time, though, and he's certainly not feeling it right now. Because no. He is not panicking. He is not some clingy hologram who-

He growls in frustration, stomping angrily after Rhys and the nerd.

Then he stops, because no, he's not giving into this thing, whatever it is. He is Handsome Jack, and Handsome Jack doesn't just give into things. He especially doesn't feel panic, nor does he follow nobodies like Rhys.

He folds his arm across his chest and stands his ground.

"Oh my fucking god," he hears Rhys grumble from yards away, suddenly stopping to turn and face Jack. "Could you keep up, please?"

"Why?" Jack asks, mostly because he's curious, but also because –Rhys is not his fucking boss and Jack does not follow orders.

"Because I don't like suddenly feeling like I left the stove on," Rhys growls back at him. "It's making me paranoid, so could you just?"

Jack frowns somewhat. Hmm. So Rhys feels it too, but it's not as pronounced? Weird. Definitely weird. But something to focus on, at least; something he can attempt to unravel. He might not be in this holographic form for long, but he can at least attempt to figure out how it works. Because, hey, he might actually be stuck here for a bit, until they get back to Helios.

That might take a while, unfortunately. Especially since they're stranded out in the desert. And right now Jack really has nothing better to do.

"We're waiting for a hologram to catch up…?" the nerd asks, confused.

"Aw, what's the matter, pumpkin? Can't stand to be without me?" Jack asks, standing his ground.

Rhys's shoulders stiffen. He shakes his head and turns away from Jack, stomping off angrily.

The yanking, panicked feeling returns somewhere in Jack's nonexistent chest. It's so fucking weird. The further apart they get, the more he feels like-

And then he teleports.

He doesn't mean for it to happen. He's literally watching Rhys walk away one second, and then the next he's inside of the kid.

Rhys freaks out.

"Don't do that!" the kid shouts, jumping out of the space the hologram is currently occupying, hands rubbing awkwardly down his chest as he shivers, like he's covered in invisible cobwebs.

Jack blinks. Suddenly teleporting is a bit disorientating. "Oh, like I did it on purpose, cupcake. Calm down."

The nerd stares at Rhys. "What just happened? What did he do?"

"Oh, like it's my fault," Jack says, insulted.

Why does the hero always get blamed for everything?

"He just… teleported to me, suddenly," Rhys says, shaking his head. "It's nothing. Sorry."

The look he gives Jack is supposed to be angry, he assumes, but instead it just looks exhausted, like Rhys is tired of this. Well, screw him. Jack's tired of this shit too. It's not like he asked for this, after all. It's not like he woke up one morning and was like 'oh, hey, I'll just be a hologram uploaded into some code monkey's head and irritate the shit out of him, yeah that sounds like fun'. No. He didn't do that. Because this sucks.

"Note to self," Jack says, not to himself. Loudly. Because fuck you, Rhys, that's why. "We can't be too far apart or I will teleport inside you. Bet you like that, huh, cupcake?"

"Please stop talking," Rhys says with this whole 'kill me now' tone of voice, and his cheeks are red.

Jack smirks. "You do like that, huh, cupcake? I bet you like all these pet names, too."

"For the love of god, stop talking," Rhys groans.

The nerd looks at him like he's crazy.

"Don't even ask," Rhys says.

"No, go on, ask," Jack says, like the nerd can hear him. "I want to hear you explain yourself."

Rhys gives him a withering look and then turns to walk away. Jack laughs, following a few paces behind him, mostly so he won't teleport suddenly again. Useful ability if he could control it but he honestly has no idea how he did that. So. There's that.

"So this crush on me…" Jack says.

"It's not a crush!" Rhys says loudly, throwing him another withering look. "I already told you, I had Hyperion issued motivational posters! Everyone had them!"

"Are you… okay, Rhys?" the nerd asks, clearly stunned at the sudden outburst.

It makes Jack laugh harder. Rhys really looks crazy right now. "So this crush on me," he says again. "How far does it go? Because you're blushing more than usual there, Rhysie."

"Oh my god…" Rhys looks away, shoulders slumped. "What did I do to deserve this? No, really – what the hell did I do to deserve a hologram picking on me in the middle of a desert on Pandora?"

"Well… we did steal ten million dollars," the nerd says helpfully. "And attempted to steal Vasquez's deal. And stole his car. And broke a vault key, which wasn't really a vault key. And-"

"Okay, you're not helping!" Rhys says, tossing his friend that same withering glare.

"Rhysie, I didn't know you were such a little thief," Jack says, mostly because watching Rhys suddenly blush is amusing, and he's bored. "A kid after my own heart. But you broke a vault key?"

"It wasn't real," Rhys says quickly. "Fiona and Sasha made it to look like it was real, but it wasn't."

Of course. The Pandoran con artists. "And that actually worked on you?"

"Hey, don't look at me," Rhys says. "I was following what information I got from hacking Vasquez's computer. It's not my fault he was overconfident and didn't realize it was a fake. I didn't even know until I saw the key and tried to scan it; there was this EMP blast or something and it… I dropped it. It broke. Pretty clear it wasn't real then."

That is quite possibly the most Rhys has spoken to Jack since he came to life in the kid's head. Huh. Interesting.

"Okay, only hearing half the conversation is a bit confusing," the buff nerd says, catching Rhys's attention.

Rhys sighs. He's so dramatic. "Right, yeah, sorry, Vaughn. Let's keep moving."

They're already moving, but they pick up the pace a bit.

Jack sighs and follows after. He really has no choice. It's either that or teleport again.

When Vaughn asks about the girls again, Jack sighs and focuses on Rhys's head.

Rhys winces as Jack inserts himself back inside, in a dreamless sort of slumber.

xXx

On Pandora, the day cycle is 90 hours long.

That's roughly 45 hours of daylight, 45 hours of night.

It's too long.

The heat is harsh, and they're both thirsty. It's hot and humid and there are no clouds, of course. Of course there's not. Because the planet hates him. Everything hates him. The universe hates him.

That's why they're suck here, on this chaotic planet, in the middle of a desert, and he has a hologram stuck in his head.

Because everything hates him.

They're going to die out here if they don't find water or something soon.

He brings up his robotic palm, attempting to call Yvette again, but sadly she doesn't answer. He sighs, closing his palm and dropping his arm back to his side. Vaughn looks at him hopefully, then sighs sadly when Rhys shakes his head at him. Still nothing from Yvette.

He won't say anything about it, but he's worried how much longer they can last.

Panicking Vaughn won't help matters, though.

"Do you think the girls are okay?" Vaughn asks,again, and something inside of Rhys snaps.

"Would you stop asking about them already?" he snaps, shooting his friend a glare. He'll blame his rage on the heat later, but for right now… "What does it matter how they are? They don't care about us! They left us here to die! You're so worried about them, but they obviously don't care about us, do they? Or they'd be here!"

He waves around them as he spins in a slow circle, making it a point to show that they are, in fact, alone, in this desert wasteland.

"It's just you and me. If they cared at all they would have come to find us by now."

"Someone's panties are in a twist," Jack comments, a flicker of blue in the corner of Rhys's eye. He growls and rounds on the hologram.

"Shut the hell up," he snaps. "I am not in the mood for your shit right now, okay? If you have nothing helpful to say, then don't say anything at all."

With that, he starts walking again.

It takes a moment, but eventually Vaughn's footsteps follow after him.

There's not a lot of conversation after that.

xXx

Rhys doesn't like losing his temper.

He tends to lash out at people and do and say things he regrets once his mind is a little less fogged with anger. Vaughn doesn't deserve his rage, after all.

"I'm sorry," he apologizes later, with a weak voice and a dry mouth. It's so hot, and they still haven't found any water or anything. At least Vaughn is wearing his shirt on his head again, but Rhys refuses to just strip in the desert.

He becomes increasingly self-conscious when he has fewer layers of clothes on.

And with Holo-Jack stalking him, he would feel really self-conscious. Yeah, no. Not happening right now. Not today. No thanks.

"It's cool, bro," Vaughn tells him. "The heat's just getting to you, is all."

They walk in silence for a few more minutes.

"You do have a point, though…" Vaughn admits.

"Hmm?" Rhys glances at him.

"About the girls," Vaughn says. "It's been like… half a Pandoran day since we were separated, right? They have a vehicle. They could come find us, but instead…" He shrugs. "So you're not completely wrong, you know."

Rhys knows he's not wrong, but hearing Vaughn sound so downtrodden is not what he wanted. "It'll be okay," he says as confidently as he can. "We'll be fine."

Vaughn nods, but he doesn't look convinced. Of course he's not convinced. Rhys himself isn't convinced they won't die in the next few hours if they don't find something to drink soon.

And it's very unlikely they'll be able to find another cave to stay in tonight, so there's the matter of shelter to deal with, if they make it to nightfall again.

The days on Pandora are too long

xXx

(So I will confess this story is not mine but I like the way it was written as well as the story, the story is made by Aku Chibi I on Archive of our Own or AOE and Muffy the Dough Slayer on Fanfiction .net support him/her and all the people and the story is owned by their respectful owners nothing is mine)

{PS. I did get permission as long I say who the story belongs too and fixing any fuck ups I did along the way so yes I did get permission}


	2. Betrayal

(Story is not mine, Belongs to their owners)

It starts with a moonshot, a few hours later.

They're barely moving, too tired and hot and thirsty to do much of anything, when suddenly there's thissound, and they look up to find something firing from Helios. "About time," Rhys says thankfully, assuming it's Yvette finally coming through for them and sending them the supplies they requested so long ago.

The moonshot is coming right for them, though.

"Looks like that tracker is working," Jack laughs at the look on their faces, no doubt.

Rhys and Vaughn jump out of the way of the moonshot. It hits the ground and opens to reveal a car driving into the distance due to the momentum, before it turns quickly and heads back toward them. The car looks very familiar, even if the color is wrong, and a knot forms in Rhys's stomach.

That's not help.

The car stops suddenly in front of them, kicking up sand and dust into the air, leaving them coughing. Rhys scowls as the window rolls down to reveal Vasquez.

Great. As if the day couldn't get any worse.

Vasquez gets out of the car, smirking at them all the while. Rhys hates his stupid face.

He gets out of the car with a red Hyperion shotgun in his hand. "Fancy meeting you two here," he says calmly, with that smug smirk and tone of his voice. "Here I was, out for a nice drive… and I land right on just the guys I was looking for."

"I thought you wanted a black car," Rhys can't help but say.

Vasquez laughs. "I see what you did there. That's funny. You steal my car, you make jokes about it. That's good, that's great stuff."

He steps forward threateningly. Rhys and Vaughn share a quick look before they both back up, away from the man with the gun.

"Look," Vasquez says, "I know we had a deal…"

Deal?

Rhys thinks back to the death race, when Vasquez called him right in the middle of it. Oh, right. Vasquez offered him a deal; set Vaughn up for the fall, turn on his best friend, and he could be allowed back into Hyperion and they'd forget this whole thing ever happened. Yeah, right! Like he would turn on his best friend.

He would never do that.

"And while I don't like to go back on an agreement…" Vasquez continues, still walking toward them until their backs are pressed against a large rock formation behind them, "made man to man… the circumstances have changed."

Rhys opens his mouth to tell Vasquez where to shove his little deal, when-

"That's right," Vaughn suddenly snaps, causing Rhys to blink at him, tearing his gaze away from Vasquez briefly. "We did have a deal."

Rhys stares at Vaughn, something painful clenching in his . Fuck.

"You convince me to double-cross my best friend, and the day isn't even really over when you're double-crossing me?"

Each word Vaughn speaks is painful in Rhys's chest.

Vaughn, what…?

"Wow, Vaughn," he manages weakly, causing Vaughn to at least flinch and look at him finally, "wow."

Vaughn gives him this look, all doe-eyed and apologetic, before he glances back at Vasquez. "Should've known better than to trust a snake like you," he says to the guy.

Rhys keeps staring at him.

His best friend.

Who… turned his back on him. Betrayed him.

Was going to just hand him over, let him take the fall, take the blame, let him be killed…

And why?

It makes no sense.

Rhys tries to think of a reason Vaughn might do this. He can't think of one. Vaughn never seemed like the type to betray him before, so to suddenly have him saying these things, making a deal with Vasquez behind Rhys's back…

It fucking hurts.

Rhys trusted Vaughn. He had Vaughn's back.

He turned down his chance at getting out of this unscathed simply so he wouldn't have to turn on his friend.

And yet… Vaughn went and turned on him.

He thinks back to Vaughn's words through the night.

He said Rhys was a good friend.

Rhys is a good friend.

Vaughn… not so much.

It hurts. Like hell.

He's almost glad he's dehydrated right now. At least then there aren't any tears at the sudden ruins of a friendship he thought was true.

"Don't be like that, little guy, it's the way of the… uh…" Vasquez trails off briefly. "Listen, I'm gonna go see if I have a shirt in the trunk, 'cause your body is making me uncomfortable. Hold tight."

He turns his back on the two of them and walks toward the car, confident they won't escape.

He's right.

He has a gun and a car; running won't save them.

And right now, Rhys doesn't even care to try and run.

He folds his arms across his chest, something he does when he feels hurt, and stares at Vaughn, who is looking at him again. All wide-eyed and apologetic.

Rhys's eyes narrow into betrayed slits.

"Look," Vaughn whispers urgently, "I told him I would sell you out, but I was never gonna do it. I was just saying whatever he wanted to hear to get that jerk off our backs. I wasn't gonna follow through with it. Please believe me. I swear, Rhys, I would never betray you."

Rhys stares at him. Tries to summon up the will to believe him.

Can't.

Because Vasquez offered him the same deal, but he didn't take it, and Vaughn is smart. He knows better than to trust Vasquez, to attempt to get him off their backs that way. He's only apologizing because he was caught and turned on by the man he trusted over Rhys.

His supposed best friend.

Rhys says nothing. Vaughn's expression falls.

"Rhys?" he whispers. "Please believe me."

And then Vasquez is coming back over to them, having not found a shirt in his trunk. It's easier to focus on him and his own impending death than on Vaughn's betrayal, and the pain in the back of his throat.

He doesn't process the fact Vasquez has anything in his hands before a shovel is thrown at him. He barely manages to catch it before it knocks the air from his lungs, and another shovel lands on the ground at Vaughn's feet.

"You two freaks start digging," Vasquez says, smirking at them. "I wanna see a decent grave going before too long."

Vaughn slowly picks up the shovel.

Vasquez looks at Rhys.

Rhys glares back at him. Tries to think of a way out of this. Thoughts are too scattered because of the whole I thought you were my friend, Vaughn…

"Let's work this out," Rhys says without thinking, mind working on auto-pilot.

He can feel Vaughn's eyes on him.

"We're way, way past that," Vasquez says, keeping a light grip on the gun.

Think, Rhys.

"You and me, we could, uh…" Rhys trails off there, because there's not really anything he has that Vasquez could want. He could tell him about Jack and offer that as a trade for both his and Vaughn's lives, but he knows Vasquez. He knows he'll betray them, kill them both anyway, and take what he wants. So there's really no point in trying to talk this out.

He's quiet for too long.

Vasquez steps forward, suddenly slamming the gun into Rhys's chest, effectively knocking the air from his lungs. He gasps, losing his grip on the shovel. It clatters to the ground just in time to be out of the way as Vasquez suddenly head-butts him in the mouth.

"Rhys!" Vaughn says.

It hurts – the pain is sudden and sharp and ouch. Rhys holds a hand to his mouth, wincing painfully. Out of the corner of his eye he sees blue flicker to life. Vasquez takes a step back, holding his forehead where he hit Rhys in the mouth, seemingly equally pained. Good. Serves him right.

"Ughh! Damn," Vasquez says, wincing. "Damn that smarts. I think I did that wrong. You got a tough noggin. It looks so easy in the movies…"

"Amateur hour," Jack says. "You gotta aim for the bridge of the nose, dum-dum." Rhys glances at Jack out of the corner of his eye, and finds the hologram watching him now. "How is it every time I show up you idiots are in a worse situation?"

Rhys sighs, running his cybernetic hand through his hair – a nervous habit. Great. Now not only is he going to die in the next few minutes, but he's going to have to be picked on, too. Just great.

The day can't possibly get any worse.

"You're not helping," he mutters to the hologram.

Vasquez straightens up, removing his hand from his head, revealing a red mark from Rhys's mouth. Good. Serves him right. Asshole. "Alright, fun's over," he says. "Looks like we'll be settling for the shallow variety of grave." He brings the gun back up, leveling it with Rhys's chest. "Rhys, you die first, and then he can load your body into the car. I'll bury Vaughn myself."

"What?" Vaughn asks shakily.

"Yeah, they want this idiot's body for something up there," Vasquez says, confused. "Something, ah… important floating around in his head."

Rhys glances at Jack, catching his eye briefly.

"This is a prototype," Vasquez says smugly, glancing down at the gun still aimed at Rhys. "Most advanced gun Hyperion has ever made."

"Someone's overcompensating," Jack comments in Rhys's ear, sending shivers down his spine because wow, Jack is really close to him suddenly. If he actually had to breathe to speak those words would be ghosting across his ear, all breathy and warm and no, he does not need this right now.

He tries his best to just ignore the hologram in his last moments of life.

The gun charges up, an orb of energy surrounding the muzzle, and Rhys swallows thickly. This is it. This is the end of his life.

He's going to die here.

But suddenly the gun messes up, somehow.

It stutters, and the strange energy orb disperses. Rhys smirks, quirking a smug brow as he watches Vasquez attempt to fix it, looking all over on the gun.

"Any… last words?" Vasquez asks absently, looking the gun over.

Rhys chuckles faintly. "Two. Eat shit."

"Yeah, that's the spirit," Jack says somewhat proudly. It's… odd.

"I'll be sure to put 'ate shit' on your tombstone," Vasquez says, shaking his head.

"I'd be more worried about my tombstone if you knew where the safety was," Rhys says.

"You're hilarious. I'm gonna miss your…" Vasquez trails off, still attempting to find the safety.

"Okay, look," Jack says, suddenly stepping in front of Rhys, partially blocking his view of Vasquez and the gun. Only partially because the guy is a hologram, after all. "As much fun as it would be to watch this idiot kill you two idiots, I can't let that happen. I'm… I'm not inside you but I'm… Look, if you go,I go. I've enhanced your ECHO-eye, so use it to hack something that can get us out of this jam. You can figure out how to pay me back later." He steps back to stand next to Rhys. "I've got your back."

There's this…feeling as Jack tries to clap a hand to Rhys's shoulder, like they're friends or something. It's so strange. It feels weird, and Jack's body just flickers and goes through him anyway. He wishes Jack would stop trying to touch him.

"Okay," Jack says, "mess this guy up."

Rhys activates his ECHO-eye with a thought, seeing the electric bits of the Hyperion gun and the car behind Vasquez. He goes for the car, hacking into it, and smirking when he realizes he can now see deeper subsystems than he could before. He now has access to other things… like the accelerator.

He activates the accelerator with a thought, using it to control the car.

While Vasquez is busy with the gun, Rhys quirks a brow and turns the car around so it's aimed at Vasquez.

Then, he sends the car rushing toward the guy.

Rhys jumps out of the way as the car smacks into Vasquez and through the place he previous occupied. Vasquez winds up on the ground, winded but not dead, and Rhys gets back to his feet, attempting to turn off his ECHO-eye, but it's taking longer than usual for some reason.

Jack is doing that loud laugh of his.

Rhys's cybernetic arm suddenly reaches out, fingers curling to point at Vasquez as Jack keeps laughing.

"Uh… what are you doing with your arm?" Vaughn asks.

"I'm… I'm not doing it," Rhys says, smacking at the arm with his flesh hand.

"Oh, hello," Jack says smugly, and next to him the hologram's hand turns palm-up. Rhys's cybernetic hand does the same.

Oh. Oh fucking shit.

Just fucking great.

Jack is controlling his cybernetic arm.

The hand moves off to the side briefly, and then toward Rhys's face.

"C'mon, let me hit ya," Jack says.

Rhys fights the cybernetic arm away with his flesh hand. "No, this is my arm! Get out!"

His grip falters briefly, and the cybernetic hand smacks into his face, momentarily blinding him from the pain. Jack laughs in his ear but vanishes in the middle of saying something. Hmm. Odd.

He doesn't have time to think about it though, because now Vaughn is running away.

He looks over and Vasquez is getting up.

Oh, shit.

Rhys moves to chase after Vaughn, then thinks better of it. Because Rhys is a thinker. He likes making plans. He's good at it. It's not his fault if people don't listen to his ideas.

He uses his ECHO-eye to regain access to the car's subsystems.

He forces the car out of Vasquez's reach as the guy tries to climb inside it, presumably to run them over. Instead the car swerves around Vasquez and straight toward Rhys, stopping next to him to allow Rhys to enter said car. He gives up his ECHO-eye access and drives the car after Vaughn, leaving Vasquez shouting at him in the dust.

Vaughn keeps running, presumably thinking the car is driven by Vasquez.

Rhys drives in front of him and stops, throwing open the passenger door.

"Get in!" he snaps.

Vaughn does as he's told, immediately climbing inside the vehicle.

And they drive away from Vasquez and the desert heat.

xXx

"I'm sorry," Vaughn says quietly, after they're driving for a time. They're finally getting out of the desert, it seems; he can see greenery around them now.

Rhys ignores him. It's all he can do to keep calm right now. He's exhausted and pained and hurt in more ways than one. He doesn't want to talk about this right now. He just wants to get out of the desert.

"Rhys? I'm sorry."

"I heard you," he says, not unkindly, but not pleasantly either. It's this dull, flat sort of tone he usually hates and tries not to use on Vaughn, but he's too exhausted right now. He doesn't care how it makes his friend feel. Are they even friends anymore? Fuck, he doesn't know.

"I would never betray you," Vaughn tells him timidly. "You have to believe that."

"He offered me the deal too."

Vaughn's quiet for a moment. When he speaks again, his voice is full of shock. "Oh, really? What… What did you say?"

"I told him no," Rhys says flatly, giving his friend a dull look before returning his gaze on the road, right foot pressing down on the accelerator a little more, causing them to speed up.

I told him no, and you told him yes. You sold me out. You were going to sell me out.

And it fucking hurts.

Rhys never had a lot of friends growing up. He came from a poor part of Eden-5; his parents had little to do with him for the most part, busy trying to earn a living, which was understandable. At the age of thirteen he was caught in a bandit raid, half of him blown to hell and back. He lost his left eye and his right arm. He was born left-handed, but had been raised ambidextrous, so losing his right arm wasn't too bad. It could have been worse.

Nevertheless, only having one arm and one eye was terrible.

He was a freak.

The planet fell into a depression of sorts, with all the major companies searching for vaults and riches and everything across the universe.

His parents couldn't afford to feed him anymore. None of the kids his age had anything to do with him after he lost his arm and became a cripple.

His parents sold him to Hyperion to be part of their experimental cybernetics program. It was a win-win, to them. They got money for handing over their son as a 'volunteer', and Rhys got his arm and eyesight back. Simple. It was a long and painful process, though, back in Tassiter's days of running the company. That guy was a grade-A asshole. Thank god Jack killed him.

Maybe that was one reason Rhys looked up to Jack for so long.

He took out the man responsible for a lot of unnecessary pain on Rhys's part.

The experimental process of getting a cybernetic Hyperion limb, and an ECHO-eye, was painful and dangerous. Most of the subjects died. It was painful to learn that, to his parents, that wasn't a downside. They couldn't afford to feed a cripple like him. If he had to die, at least it wasn't by starvation, and they technically did what they could for him. In their eyes, this was fine with them.

That hurt.

Betrayal always hurts.

But he didn't really have friends. Didn't understand the concept.

Not until he met Vaughn when they were twenty and twenty-one, respectively. That was six years ago.

Six years of friendship, and Vaughn is willing to just turn on him.

It's painful, and it sucks, and Rhys doesn't have time for this shit.

Vaughn was his first real friend, his best friend, and Rhys would do anything for him. Anything.

And Vaughn was going to sell him out.

Betray him, like everyone else.

First his parents, then those scientists and engineers at Hyperion, then Fiona and Sasha not looking for them, and now this. Vaughn betraying him.

It hurts worse than losing a limb.

And he's well-acquainted with that feeling.

"Rhys…?"

Vaughn's quiet voice breaks him out of his thoughts. There's a lump in his throat. Swallowing hurts.

"What?" he asks weakly, feeling utterly drained.

"You… You're going to break the steering wheel…"

Rhys takes in a shallow breath and looks down to see that his cybernetic hand is indeed close to crushing the steering wheel with his tight grip. He relaxes said grip and looks back at the road ahead.

They're finally out of the desert.

"Are you…? I know you're not okay, forget I said that. Okay. I just. I'm sorry. Okay?I'm sorry."

"Please stop talking," Rhys says tiredly.

He's too tired and spent and hurt for this. He can't do this right now.

"Rhys, please… what would you have done? I was trying to buy us time and get him off our backs!"

"What would I have…?" Rhys turns a glare on his friend. "I told him no! He offered me the exact same thing he offered you but you know what the difference is?I didn't turn on you."

He snaps his mouth shut and leaves it at that.

Fuck. He hates snapping at Vaughn.

Hates it so much.

It does nothing to settle the cold ball of hurt in his stomach.

Lashing out isn't a good idea, ever.

"I'm sorry," Vaughn says quietly. "I'm so sorry, Rhys. I just… I didn't know what to do. I thought I could play him. I thought… I was just… I wasn't going to betray you. I just wanted him off our backs. You're my best friend, Rhys. I wouldn't… I would never betray you."

He keeps saying that.

Rhys isn't sure who he's trying to convince: himself, or Rhys.

"Let's just play the silent game," Rhys says flatly.

Vaughn, thankfully, stays quiet.

xXx

Vaughn looks at Rhys occasionally. His friend's jaw is clenched tight, muscles jumping haphazardly. He really messed up. He knows he did, and he has no idea how to fix it. He's apologized over and over again, but Rhys won't listen.

I wasn't going to betray you, Rhys…

He really wasn't.

He would never betray . They're best friends. Vaughn was always a nerd, always teased and picked on and bullied for it, and Rhys was his first real friend. When he realized his new roommate was a cyborg of sorts, he wasn't sure what to think at first – a bit terrified, maybe, from watching those old movies about cyborgs trying to take over the planet, but that was just the nerd in him showing.

Rhys didn't look like a nerd, but he definitely was.

He and Vaughn got along so well. It was perfect. His first real friend, and his roommate, no less. It was the best.

They aren't roommates anymore, of course; they each have their own apartments on Helios now. Or, used to. Because they're blacklisted now, and that panic from earlier threatens to consume his mind again. They're blacklisted, and stranded on Pandora, and everyone's trying to kill them, it seems.

Vaughn wasn't lying earlier when he said he never felt so alive.

It's… exhilarating, being on Pandora like this, but it's also terrifying and unsettling because he's not used to this. He wasn't made for this. He is an accountant for crying out loud. He's good with money and numbers; not surviving on Pandora. Mixed up with vault hunters and bandits and grifters and…

And now Rhys hates him.

It hurts, it really does.

He didn't think things through enough, and that's his own fault. When he accepted Vasquez's deal, he was merely trying to get him off their backs. He had no doubt Rhys would come up with a plan to get them out of this mess; he always had a plan B. He always came up with something out of nowhere. He'd get them out of this mess. They just needed time.

So he tried to buy them some.

And it backfired spectacularly.

The way Rhys looked at him… so betrayed… so confused…

He never saw it coming. He trusted Vaughn.

Which is great, because Vaughn didn't betray Rhys. He never would.

Rhys is his best friend – the only person in the universe who probably gives a damn about him, besides Yvette. Rhys has been his best friend for six years. Vaughn would never betray him, but Rhys won't listen to him.

Vasquez offered the same deal to Rhys, and Rhys told him no.

Vaughn should have said no, too. He just… didn't think things through…

And now Rhys hates him.

And he has every right to, because Vaughn messed up and broke Rhys's trust.

I'm so sorry, Rhys…

"S-So," he says weakly, before clearing his throat, hoping his voice sounds at least a little stronger now, despite how small he feels. "Where are we going?"

Rhys spares him a quick glance with his brown eye before looking back out the window. Rhys can't even stand to look at him.

I'm sorry…

"We could meet up with the girls in… um… Hollow Point…" Vaughn starts to offer, before remembering that Rhys is angry with the girls, too, for not coming back for them. It's just another betrayal in his eyes, he's sure. Vaughn swallows thickly. "Or we can go to Old Haven. We know where they're going to be eventually going, so… they can just meet us there…"

Rhys is silent for a long time.

The silence is uncomfortable and wrong. Usually, their silences are companionable and easy, but now… now it's suffocating, and he hates it. He just wants Rhys totalk to him.

"Rhys?"

"Hollow Point," Rhys says with that same flat tone as before, the one Vaughn really hates.

"Okay," Vaughn says, because at least Rhys is talking to him, right? "So we'll meet up with the girls?"

Rhys nods once, and says nothing more.

Well. There goes that.

"Can you ever forgive me?" Vaughn asks softly.

Rhys's grip on the steering wheel tightens again, a muscle jumping in his jaw as he grits his teeth, keeping silent.

"I wasn't… I wasn't going to betray you… I would never… You have to believe me, Rhys. You're my best friend, I… please forgive me?"

"I'll think about it," Rhys says finally.

It's not much, but it's more than Vaughn had before.

He nods and goes quiet, knowing it's what Rhys wants. He'll give it to him.

For now.


	3. Hollow Point

Jack does not like to keep blacking out randomly.

There's a common theme when it happens, he's sure, but still. It's disorientating. It's not like when he goes into Rhys's head of his own accord; instead it's different and cold and empty and he does not like it.

When he fizzles into existence again, he's in the backseat of that one guy's car, and Rhys and the nerd are up front. There's this awkward, tense silence between them. The nerd keeps looking at Rhys like he's hopeful about something, also very guilty about something. It's this torn expression Jack is rather familiar with. Hmm. What happened?

"Miss me, cupcake?" he asks, mostly to see Rhys completely flinch. His hands jerk on the wheel, causing the car to go sideways for a moment before he straightens out their path, throwing Jack a glare in the rear view mirror.

"W-What was that?" the nerd asks.

"Jack's back," Rhys says flatly, looking back at the road.

Hmm. Okay. Yeah, he missed something. Something's definitely wrong here.

"What's up, buttercup?"

"What do you care?" Rhys mutters, mostly under his breath, but the car isn't exactly huge, and everyone hears him.

Jack frowns, unable to stop himself. He likes picking on Rhys; it's amusing, and takes away the boredom, and he's used to Rhys snapping back at him occasionally, but this is different. Something is wrong.

"I care because I'm stuck in your head, cupcake," Jack says. "So tell me what's wrong. What did I miss?"

Rhys shakes his head, and doesn't answer.

Jack does not like to be ignored. He opens his mouth to start yelling at the kid, when Rhys catches his eye in the rear view mirror again.

"I'll tell you later," he mouths, but doesn't actually voice.

Jack's pretty good at reading lips, though. It's a useful trick to have, after all.

Huh. Okay. So he doesn't want the nerd to hear? That's… strange. Aren't they friends?

Yeah, he really missed something.

But, Rhys does plan on telling him, and that's something, at least.

So he nods and remains silent.

xXx

It takes a while, and a lot of gas, but thankfully Vasquez's car was full of gas when they took it. They finally reach Hollow Point as the sun gives way to the harsh, chilly night.

Rhys isn't sure why he decides to go to the mechanic's place, but he's got a feeling that's the first place Fiona and Sasha would go. They need their ride fixed, after all.

Sure enough, as he pokes his head inside, he sees the caravan being worked on by said mechanic, but the girls are nowhere to be seen. Of course they're not. It's been, what? Probably a day since they arrived? So about 90 hours?

They're probably staying somewhere.

They're from here, right? So they probably have a place nearby.

Rhys has a few options.

**Find the hideout and the girls – offer what help he can. ****Leave them here and head to Old Haven. They can meet him there when they're ready. ****Forget about everyone and take off on his own. Vaughn will be fine with the girls.**

He sighs, running his cybernetic hand through his hair again.

The third option is tempting.

Rhys is a selfish person at heart; he's greedy and selfish and self-serving. He's perfect for Hyperion. He likes getting what he wants.

But he's also empathetic. Ditching his friend will hurt him.

He's also into surviving, and sticking with these people…

He's not sure when Vaughn got thrown into the these people category, but it leaves his breath catching in his throat. It hurts. None of these people are his friends.

Maybe in time, he'll forgive Vaughn… but for right now, he's angry, and hurt, and he needs to be alone.

"You stay here," he tells Vaughn as he walks past him, back out of the garage. "I'm going for a walk. Maybe I'll find the girls."

"I don't think you should go alone?" Vaughn says, confused.

Rhys fingers his stun baton, dormant in his pocket. Vaughn swallows and nods.

Rhys leaves without another word to him.

He just needs to be alone right now.

Sadly, when one has a hologram in their head, they're rarely alone.

"Okay, cupcake, what did I miss?" Jack asks the second he's outside of the garage, away from Vaughn but clearly not alone.

"I'm just a little angry."

"A little? Rhysie, you have anger problems if this is a little angry. And I know angry. Trust me. I wrote the book on angry."

The guy loves the sound of his own voice, doesn't he?

"Look, I just…"

"Yessss?" Jack draws out.

"Vaughn was going to sell me out to Vasquez," Rhys says in a quick breath, just wanting to get it off his chest because fuck it hurts… "He was going to let me take the fall and hand me over and let them kill me and – and he says he didn't mean it, that he wouldn't betray me, but I just-"

"Wait!" Jack says sharply. "Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait – that loser, he was…? He betrayed you?! That nerd?"

Rhys nods weakly, unsure what else to do. "And he apologized and said he didn't mean it, that he was just trying to get him off our backs, but I just… Vasquez offered me the same deal, and I said no, and Vaughn said yes, and I just… I probably shouldn't be angry. I'm probably overreacting."

Jack's eyes narrow at him. "Uh, no, pumpkin, you're not overreacting. You're reacting perfectly normally, actually. In fact you should be more angry. That little dweeb turned on you? Betrayed you? If you let him live, he'll only do it again, and you won't make it out next time."

Jack looks… intimidating, when he's angry. He's got this tone in his voice, and his eyes are glowing somewhat in the new darkness around them. But, of course, Hollow Point is basically an underground city, in a network of caves, so of course it's dark here, but even so, it's the night cycle now.

Rhys shakes his head. "I'm not going to kill him, are you crazy? He's… He's my friend."

"He's not," Jack says, scowling at him. "Look, Rhysie, cupcake, pumpkin – if you have friends, they'll stab you in the back. You don't have friends, you have enemies. If he was your friend he wouldn't have turned on you in the first place."

Rhys sighs, looking at the ground. He honestly doesn't know what to think.

"I'm just so angry," Rhys admits quietly, running his robotic hand through his hair again. "I just… He's my best friend. And I said no, and he said yes, and he's so sorry, but I just… I don't know if I can…"

"Don't believe him," Jack tells him. "Are you listening to me, cupcake? Don't trust him. He'll only stab you in the back again. Keep him around for now if you have to, because you seem to do better in a group and you're going to need help opening the vault, but don't trust him."

"I don't know… I just… I don't know. Fuck it. Let's just… I need to find the girls."

He starts walking again. If anyone saw him right now, he'd look crazy, talking to himself and basically answering himself, but oh well. He doesn't care about that right now.

He's going to have to get better at ignoring Jack, though, if they're going to be around more people now. Especially the girls. They'll throw him out if they learn he's got an AI program of Handsome Jack in his head.

Oh well,a darker part of Rhys's mind don't have to trust them. Use them, because they're using you, too.

His hands clench into fists at his sides, and he pushes onward through Hollow Point.

He doesn't make it very far before his shoulder is grabbed and he's thrown harshly to the ground. He groans and rolls over so he's on his back, looking up at the masked figure. Oh, great. Bandit gear. Fucking perfect.

As if today wasn't sucky enough already.

There's a sudden sharp pain in his head. He groans and rolls his head that way to find a bandit moving away from him – a second bandit. Who kicked him in the head. Fucking ow.

Jack has vanished again, flickering out when his head got hit.

Huh.

That's… what, three times now, that he's vanished after Rhys's head was hit? First when he bumped his head into the girder, then he reappeared that one time, suddenly, when Rhys was head-butted, and then he vanished again when he hit himself in the head.

Or, when Jack hit him in the head. Whatever.

Huh… strange.

He doesn't have long to think about it, though. The bandits are eyeing him – or, he thinks so, anyway. It's hard to tell with the masks and everything.

"Hyperion," one of the bandits says. "You should know better than to come down here."

Oh, right. His vest. Fuck.

He really needs to not have it on when he's on Pandora.

It's just… he's used to having it on.

He likes that vest.

A kick to the ribs, then.

He coughs, groaning loudly as the air is ripped from his lungs.

He's already sore from Vasquez; he doesn't need this right now. Shit.

He rolls over and manages to get to his knees.

"I don't want any trouble," he manages to wheeze, holding onto his ribs with his robotic arm. "I'm just passing through."

"Nice try,Hyperion," the same bandit says distastefully. "You got a lot of nerve showing your face here after you ruined this planet."

I didn't ruin this planet. Jack might have. But it was already a crappy planet anyway.

So, see? No ruining. Not his fault.

But of course they aren't going to listen to him.

You know what, fuck this.

It's been a really long day. Rhys is tired and sore and hurt, and he really doesn't have time for this crap right now. His left hand reaches into his pocket, the flesh fingers pulling out the stun baton, which just looks like a little silver stick right now, since it's not turned on or anything.

"What's that?" a bandit asks, aiming a gun at him.

"Flashlight," Rhys says.

"Put it down."

"Okay, okay, just-"

His thumb pushes down on the button at one end of the stick. A length of pulsating, electric energy emerges from the opposite end, and it does that odd thing again. Like when he first turned it on for the first time, it sends the bandits flying away from him with this pulse of energy. It ripples across Rhys's skin, hums and vibrates through him, but doesn't hurt him in the slightest. It's so weird.

Rhys gets to his feet, holding the stun baton in his left hand.

The bandits crawl back to their feet.

By the time they realize what's happening, Rhys has jammed the end of the stun baton into one of their stomachs, and they fall to the ground in a gasping, wheezing heap as electricity surges through them. The second bandit reaches for their dropped gun, but by the time they have it up to aim it at Rhys again, Rhys is on them.

When he first did this, he felt remorse. Remorse as he murdered bandits.

Now he feels nothing, because it's been a long day and he's so fucking tired.

He rams the length into the bandit's eye, into his head.

The bandit screams.

Then collapses. It's over in just a few seconds.

Rhys turns off the stun baton, the electric, pulsating energy fading away before he pockets the stick.

Stepping over corpses is getting a lot easier.

xXx

"Righteous father, I have found you again."

Rhys blinks, still startled from the Loader Bot suddenly landing in front of him like that. And it's still so strange to hear it calling him that. Nevertheless, he smiles.

"I have missed you," Loader Bot says, looking at him with that one red eye.

Rhys's smile grows. "I missed you more," he says, and realizes how true it was. He takes the two steps forward and hugs the bot as best he can. He's always liked robots; they're more genuine than humans, at any rate, if given the chance.

Vaughn betrayed him.

Maybe Loader Bot… won't.

Maybe.

The knot in his stomach reforms.

"Do you know where the girls are? Where have you been, buddy?" Rhys asks, releasing the bot.

"Looking for you," Loader Bot says in that robotic voice of his. "When I could not find you I came here to find the girls, and found you first."

"Well, it's good to see you," Rhys says, smiling genuinely. He really is happy to see the Loader Bot, having thought he'd lost him for good when the bot fell off the top of the caravan during the rakk attack. "Do you know where the girls are? I'm looking for them. Vaughn's back at the garage."

At least, he assumes he is. Rhys left the garage about an hour ago, and has since been attacked by bandits and everything. He hopes Vaughn's still at the garage, where it's safer. He's still not sure where he and his friend stand right now, but that doesn't mean he wants to see him hurt or anything.

"They are this way," Loader Bot says, and suddenly Rhys is on the bot's shoulders as the bot takes off into the air. Okay. Yeah. This is… yeah. This is happening now.

Rhys does not like all.

He clings to Loader Bot's… neck? Sure, why not. He clings to it as they fly through the sky, only to land about a minute later. A woman with a fancy-looking shield is standing in front of Fiona and Sasha, who are backed into a corner, clearly worried. Okay. So this woman is not a good person.

Rhys jumps off Loader Bot, reaching for his stun-baton.

Loader Bot beats him to the punch, though, easily grabbing the startled woman with the shield, and throwing her over a building. She's probably okay, Rhys surmises. Even with that fancy, physical shield, she probably also has some type of shield on her as well which will consume most of the damage from her fall, lessening what actually manages to hurt her.

He's not sure why he's worried about it, though.

"Was she bothering you?" Loader Bot asks, looking at Fiona and Sasha.

"Little late for that," Sasha informs him with a smile. "It's good to see you."

"Rhys, that you?" Fiona asks.

Rhys walks up to stand next to Loader Bot. He nods once, but says nothing, pocketing his stun-baton again.

"Where's Vaughn?" Sasha asks, frowning at him.

"At the garage," Rhys replies tiredly. "Let's go."

"It's not safe through here," Fiona informs him, like he doesn't already know. "There are bounty hunters after me."

Huh. Well, okay, that's new.

"Loader Bot can take you two back to the garage."

"Wha-…? What about you?" Sasha asks, frowning again.

Rhys shrugs. "Bounty hunters aren't after me."

He doesn't think Loader Bot can carry all three of them. It won't be a long ride, but still, why risk it? If Loader Bot crashes randomly into a building because his balance is off with three people, that won't be good for anyone.

"Besides," he says at their hesitant faces, "I have this."

He pulls the stun-baton out, but doesn't turn it on because it has this weird habit of throwing people that aren't him off their feet. Sasha grins, because she tested it out at the death rally. Somehow, when she turned it on, it didn't do that odd, 'let's throw everyone' thing it does. Huh. Interesting.

"If you're sure…?" Fiona asks, frowning at him.

Rhys shrugs, stuffing his hands, and the baton, into his pockets. "You guys go on ahead. I'll meet you there."

He'd like to be alone for a little longer, anyway.

Fiona and Sasha share looks before climbing into Loader Bot's shoulders. "We'll send Loader Bot back for you," Fiona says.

Rhys nods and waves them off as they take to the sky. The dark, cave-filled sky.

He shakes his head as they disappear from view, and begins walking through the streets in the direction they went. He'll make it back to the garage, but it will be a slower journey.

As he walks down a deserted alley, he remembers, fleetingly, to take his Hyperion vest off.

And with it goes the tie, which he usually likes. He likes his ties and socks.

But they feel too…Hyperion.

If he doesn't want to draw any unnecessary attention, he's going to need a change of clothes.

He checks his pockets again. He has some money, but not much. Enough for a change of clothes at the very least, though. He's been wearing these for a few Pandoran days.

He could also use a shower, but he'll deal with that later.

He looks at his Hyperion vest for a moment before letting it fall to the ground. He steps over it with the ease he's used to stepping over corpses with.

It's almost like it's a corpse itself – a shadow of his former life.

He's not Hyperion anymore. He's blacklisted.

And despite what he was told in his youth, he's not Hyperion property anymore.

There's… a bit of freedom in that knowledge.

He's almost smirking when he walks into a small shop.

xXx

Vaughn looks up as the sound of footsteps approaches his location inside the garage. He's been sitting in the corner for a while now – waiting for Rhys to get back, fighting the urge to go after him, but he has no idea what direction he went or anything. The mechanic – Scooter – saw him pacing around and made him sit down over here where he can 'keep an eye on him' or whatever that means. He honestly doesn't know with these Pandorans.

Fiona, Sasha, and Loader Bot enter the garage.

Vaughn's eyes widen. Rhys actually found them, as well as Loader Bot.

But Rhys doesn't follow after them.

"Uh – where's Rhys?" he asks, frowning at them.

"He sent us back on Loader Bot," Fiona says. "Said he'd walk back."

"Is that… I mean, is that a good idea?" he can't help but ask, because there are bandits everywhere on Pandora, and Rhys doesn't have a gun.

He has that stun-baton, but Vaughn hasn't really seen it in action.

And it won't do anything against a gun.

Fiona rolls her eyes. "I was going to send Loader Bot after him when we got back, relax." She looks over her shoulder at Loader Bot. "Go get him, please."

Loader Bot blinks at her with that one red eye it has, and then turns and leaves the garage. It certainly has come a long way since that time when it would only listen to Rhys's instructions.

"What's up with Rhys?" Sasha asks, looking at him.

"Uh – what?" he asks, frowning.

"Something's… off about him," she says. "But I don't know what."

Vaughn swallows thickly. He knows what's wrong with Rhys, but admitting his perceived betrayal, even if he was never actually betraying Rhys… he doesn't want to do that. So he shakes his head and sighs. "He's just – going through some things, that's all."

"Aren't we all?"

Vaughn shrugs, honestly having no response to that.

"This guy says he's a friend of yours," Scooter is saying when Vaughn tunes into the conversation taking place around the corner, near the caravan, which is completely fixed, so that's good. He looks over and finds Fiona speaking with the mechanic.

"He is," Fiona says with a smile.

"Oh," Scooter says, like he can't believe it. "Well, okay then…"

Fiona waves them toward the caravan. "Rhys will be back soon, let's get ready."

Vaughn and Sasha head toward the caravan.

Twenty minutes later they're all ready to go, but Rhys and Loader Bot aren't back yet.

Vaughn hates the worry that coils in his gut; he's not sure he has the right to worry about Rhys anymore. Are they still friends?

But even Fiona is looking worried now.

Vaughn paces in front of the caravan, waiting – impatiently. "We should go look for them," he says, for about the fifth time now.

"They'll be here soon," Fiona says, but her usual confidence is beginning to waver.

About that time, there's commotion in the entryway, and they look over to find Loader Bot putting Rhys down, who is currently scowling, arms folded across his chest. He levels his glare on Fiona for once, and it's nice not having it leveled at him, Vaughn has to admit. He's not used to facing Rhys's wrath; Rhys is always careful not to get too angry with him, especially since he's so much bigger than Vaughn, and has that strong, cybernetic hand.

Seeing Rhys angry is… disturbing, really. Rhys is never angry.

At least he's angry at Fiona right now, and not Vaughn.

"You said you'd have him come get me, not fetch me," Rhys complains.

Fiona smirks. "Eh, either way, we're all here, and ready to go. Good work, Loader Bot."

"Traitor," Rhys mutters, shooting Loader Bot a quick look even as he smiles faintly, showing he's not really angry with the bot. If Loader Bot can pick up on that, that is. That one red eye blinks at Rhys before Loader Bot climbs on top of the caravan, the only place the bot will really fit.

Rhys stops short of getting into the caravan with the others.

"Uh, Rhys, you coming?" Fiona asks, frowning at him.

"I think I'll take the car. Seems a shame to just leave it here after I liberated it and all," Rhys says, chuckling nervously as he does that thing of his, where he runs his right hand through his hair.

"Car?" Fiona asks.

"Long story," Rhys tells her. "But it feels wrong to just leave it here. I'll follow behind you guys."

He waves over his shoulder, and walks away from the caravan.

Vaughn moves to follow – because that's what he does. He follows after Rhys.

But right now, Rhys is angry with him, and still hasn't quite forgiven him.

Maybe he just needs some space.

Normally Vaughn would follow Rhys to the car.

Now, he forces himself to stay in the caravan, and sits awkwardly at the table as Fiona goes to take the wheel and lead the way out of this place.

xXx

"Riding in style, I see, and alone," Jack's voice says, alerting Rhys that the AI is back with him, currently sitting in the passenger seat, atop the small bag of Rhys's few items he purchased at the shop.

Jack doesn't seem to notice.

"Good for you, cupcake," Jack says. Rhys's hands tighten on the wheel marginally, the cool metal of his fingers firm and unyielding. "You don't need those traitors anyway. Let anyone get close and they'll stab you in the back."

Getting praise from Handsome Jack is…weird, Rhys decides.

"Now, what are we going to do about those traitorous assholes?" Jack asks.

Annnddd, that's why.

Jack always has a motive.

"I get that we need them for the vault, but after that…" Jack says almost delightfully, like it's fun plotting what they're going to do to these 'traitors'.

Rhys wants none of it.

But he's tired of arguing, and talking, and keeping silent seems like a good idea. Plus, Jack's almost in full rant mode now, so there's really no way for him to get a word in edgewise anyway, so his silence isn't noticed.

Which is fine.


	4. Old Haven, New Problems

It doesn't take them too long to get to Old Haven; with vehicles, traveling is much faster, of course.

Rhys parks behind the others and looks around the town as the caravan doors open. Old Haven is deserted and empty; a ghost town, so to speak. Sasha jokes that the bodies of the Crimson Raiders, who once occupied this town, are still wandering around. Fiona tells her to stop and Vaughn just looks a little creeped out. Just a little.

The sight is almost refreshing, and makes him smile faintly.

His smile fades away as they begin looking around the town for whatever it is they're supposed to be finding. He has no idea what they're really looking for. With a thought, he activates his ECHO-eye, instantly noticing the wires underground, which is interesting. He follows them to a power box, and uses his eye to hack into it so he can open it. From there, he pries it open, moves some cords around, and watches as one of the three power sources twitch to life.

Oh, good. They're getting somewhere.

He looks around for the other two boxes, finding one next to Vaughn, who is standing off to the side away from the others, attempting to look small as his gaze is focused on the ground. A flicker of pity ebbs in Rhys's belly. He sighs and walks toward the smaller man.

Vaughn looks up as he approaches. Rhys avoids his gaze and hacks into the power box, before flipping on that power source, too. Afterward, as he's closing the box, he finally turns his attention toward the accountant.

"Hey," he says quietly.

Vaughn looks surprised. "Hey," he says back quickly. "U-Um… Hi. Hello."

Rhys smirks faintly; Vaughn can be so terribly awkward when he's nervous. And he's nervous because of Rhys. It just seems so strange. Vaughn's never been nervous around him before; he's never had a reason to be nervous, because they're best friends. Right?

Which brings him back to his dilemma.

The smile falls from his face.

Vaughn notices. "So… y-you're still mad at me, I take it? I mean, I don't blame you, of course, I just…"

"I'm working on it," Rhys assures him, and it's the most he can do right now.

Vaughn smiles. "Thank you."

Rhys nods before switching the subject. "So how was the ride with the girls?"

"Okay, I guess. They talked about Scooter the whole time."

Rhys snickers faintly because Vaughn seems irritated. "Oh, did they, now?"

"They don't even like him like that, so I don't even know why he was the topic of conversation for two hours!" Vaughn looks at him timidly. "Uh – next time, can I ride with you?"

Rhys frowns, because he didn't realize Vaughn needed to ask. But then, that makes sense, doesn't it? Because they're at odds right now, and he did enjoy the ride alone… It gave him time to think, even if Jack was talking pretty much the whole time about how they could get back at these 'traitors'.

Maybe Rhys overreacted. Vaughn didn't actually betray him – he just planned on it. He never actually got around to doing it.

And he apologized so many times…

Maybe he's just overreacting.

"You can ride with me," Rhys tells Vaughn.

Vaughn beams at him. "Thanks, bro."

Rhys nods even as he looks around. "You wouldn't happen to know where… Oh. Okay. Never mind." He spots the third and final box atop a building, next to a billboard. Great. How is he supposed to get up there? "Okay, new question – have any idea where a ladder would be? Wait, never mind… again… Loader Bot! Heyyy, buddy."

Rhys approaches the Loader Bot, who blinks at him with that single red eye.

"Hi," the robot says.

"Hey," Rhys says, grinning. "How you doin', buddy?"

"I am fine."

"Good, good, that's good. Hey, mind giving me a lift?" He points at the building he needs to get on top of.

Loader Bot regards him momentarily, before doing the robot equivalent of a nod. Which is odd without a neck. Then the bot takes hold of him and suddenly they're in the air, lifting off the ground due to the boosters in the robot's feet, and then the next thing he knows, they're on the building he needs. Yes, this was a great idea.

"Thanks, LB," he says, turning toward the box he needs. He opens it and moves another wire around, before the third cylinder of power flashes in front of him.

Suddenly there's movement on the ground, in the distance. He runs to the edge of the building and looks to see something appearing out of the ground. Oh. Okay. That's new.

There's a secret facility hidden beneath the town. Of course there is. Freaking Atlas.

The building is huge, too. It towers over the other buildings. Not very subtle, once it's unearthed, literally.

Loader Bot takes him back to the ground, and he walks forward with the others toward the entrance of the building.

"Alright," he says, eyeing the entrance as they stop a few yards away. "Here's the plan."

And he goes into how they're going to quietly sneak inside using stealth, in case it's a trap, but before he even gets the first sentence out, he turns to find them already mostly inside the building. All of them. He glares at them, because this is the third time they've left him behind like this. And he's tired of it.

He huffs and follows after them, glaring at the backs of every one of their heads.

They make it inside, and there are bodies everywhere. Not surprising; this is Pandora, after all, but the bodies are fresh. The blood is still wet and sticky, not dry, crusted and brown. The bodies are so fresh, and he's getting too used to stepping over corpses.

Someone was here very, very recently. They must have just missed them. Or they could still be around.

As he's opening his mouth to tell them all to be a bit more careful, footsteps approach them. A lot of footsteps. He spins so his back is toward the large wall behind him, and he finds the blond gang leader, August, standing next to Vasquez. That asshole made it out of the desert after all. And now he's… what? Teamed up with August of all people? The guy who Fiona and Sasha screwed over on the vault key deal?

Great.

Everyone backs up as August, Vasquez and a bunch of other men step toward them. Without thinking, Rhys brings his robotic arm up, partially shielding Vaughn behind him as the smaller guy cowers.

"Reeeeze," August says, somehow still mispronouncing his name. It's not a hard name. Rhys. Very simple.

"Rhys and Vaughn's new little playmates, right?" Vasquez asks, looking at Loader Bot, Sasha and Fiona. "It's very good to meet the two of you. It's a shame we couldn't be meeting under different… circumstances." His gaze goes back to Vaughn and Rhys. "Vaughn. Rhys. You didn't think I'd have August handling all my dirty work, did ya?"

"How do you keep finding us?" Rhys asks, scowling at him. "Seriously – we've escaped you how many times now?"

"Loader Bot, attack!" Vaughn shouts as Vasquez takes a threatening step forward.

Loader Bot jumps into action, moving to attack Vasquez by punching him in the face with a giant, robotic fist. Vasquez merely smirks and holds up some kind of button, which he presses just as Loader Bot is about to land the punch. The fist stops mere centimeters from his face, and the whole bot freezes.

"You didn't think I'd come down here without the universal remote, did you?" Vasquez chides, looking oh so smug.

"I am shame," Loader Bot says, before Vasquez presses another button.

Loader Bot falls to the side in a limp heap.

"LB!" Rhys says, worriedly. The red eye is still moving and blinking, though, so at least Loader Bot is okay, just… unable to move. He glares at Vasquez.

"The Gortys Project," Vasquez says, going into his 'rant mode', as Rhys calls it, as he paces around them, "two halves of the Core, everything leading to a Vault… we've got it all." He gives Rhys a smug grin. "Checkmate, amigos."

Rhys scowls at him.

"What'd you think, Rhys? That you could pilfer something from my toy-box, no strings attached? You never could follow through. That's your problem."

Rhys takes in a slow breath, steeling himself, taking a step away from the others, mostly because Vasquez's anger seems mostly directed at him. No one else needs to get caught in the crossfire. "Sasha, Fiona… even Vaughn… Leave them out of this. They had nothing to do with this. All of this has been about me, trying to screw you over. So just… leave them out of this."

"I'll screw you over, you little asshole," Vasquez says sharply, and suddenly there'sow fucking shit what as he's knocked to the ground. Vasquez has a hell of a right hook. Why is it always the face?

Rhys groans from his position on the ground as he sits up.

Suddenly Jack is laying next to him, also sitting up.

"Ohh, you guys would not believe the dream I just had, holy crap…" Jack says as he flickers into existence. "Wait, wait, wait, wait… what… What the hell is this? Didn't I just do this? With this guy? Kiddo…" The hologram gets to his feet while Rhys stays sitting on the ground. "I admire your consistency, but, uh… god…"

August raises his gun, signaling for two other guys to move.

"Oh, and who is this princess?" Jack all but groans.

He's really not helping.

Rhys flinches when there are hands suddenly on him, until he realizes it's Vaughn, helping him to his feet. Oh. Okay, then. That's fine. He gets up with the help of his friend. Rhys notices then that August is walking toward the fallen Core piece on the ground, the one that Rhys took for himself, while Fiona took the other half. His piece is the bigger one.

"Wait," Vaughn says suddenly, "they-"

August's fingers land on the piece and he's immediately shocked, instantly retracting his hand.

"… shock other people…" Vaughn finishes weakly.

Rhys picks the piece up, shaking his head as it doesn't shock him, just everyone else.

"Oh. Yes," Vasquez says slowly. "I knew about that. Um. Don't touch the Cores."

"Right. Thanks… asshole," August says under his breath, wincing as he wiggles his fingers.

"They're gonna have to do it for us," Vasquez says, looking at Fiona and Rhys. "You'll cooperate, right?"

Why the hell should I?Rhys thinks, but says nothing.

"Because I figure if you don't… well, I can think of all sorts of things to do to your little friends."

Rhys glares at the guy, and says nothing. He already knows they don't have a choice.

He and Fiona share a brief look.

How are they going to get out of this?

"Two hallways, two halves," August says, looking at the doors on either side of the room, which each have a picture of one of the separate pieces of the Core on them.

"I'll take my soon to be dead janitor," Vasquez says, walking up to Rhys, "and you take miss Fancy Hat down the other one."

"Boys," August says, looking at the other men in the room, whom have surrounded Vaughn and Sasha, "you keep an eye on these two. Especially this one. Don't believe a thing she says."

"Aw, how sweet," Sasha says.

Rhys can feel Vaughn's eyes on him. He takes in a breath and offers a reassuring smile toward the smaller guy – at least, as reassuring as he can make it, considering they probably won't be seeing each other again. As soon as they get to the room, he knows Vasquez is going to shoot him. And August will shoot Fiona.

"Yeah, you sit tight," Vasquez says, putting a hand on Vaughn's shoulder. Rhys's reassuring smile falters. Vaughn growls and angrily shakes off Vasquez's hand.

"Get your hands off me!"

Vasquez's eyes narrow. "Either of these two move, you shoot 'em where they stand."

With that, there's a hand splayed across Rhys's back, and he's being led away from the group by Vasquez. He looks over his shoulder at Vaughn and Sasha; Sasha is watching her sister being led the other direction, Vaughn is watching Rhys worriedly.

Rhys looks back ahead with a sigh, as Jack follows him and Vasquez.

xXx

Vaughn watches Rhys go, worry a tight and heavy knot in his belly.

They're all going to die here. He won't be seeing his best friend again. Rhys is going to die still angry with him, and there's nothing he can do about it.

He looks over at Sasha, but she's busy looking in the other direction, toward the hallway Fiona disappeared down. Her jaw is clenched tight; she is having similar thoughts, minus the whole 'still angry' thing. Fiona is her sister; of course she's worried about her. And Rhys is Vaughn's best friend – he's worried, too.

Worried for his friend, and for himself, because holy crap I'm going to die here…

It's a thought that has definitely consumed his mind more than once since he and Rhys came down to Pandora. There are so many things that can kill them down here, not just the people but the wildlife and weather as well. They could have died the moment they stepped out of Vasquez's black car, when asking for directions for the World of Curiosities. They could have died in the fight that ensued, when Loader Bot first arrived. They could have died in that death race. They could have died when Helios was flinging moonshots at them. They could have died in the desert.

And now, here.

But the difference between all those times and now is – Vaughn wasn't alone then.

Rhys was with him, and some part of him was certain Rhys wouldn't let anything happen to him. It was a certain trust he had in his friend he was only now realizing. Rhys always came up with a plan; Rhys always did what he could to defend Vaughn. Back when they first stepped out of the car, and that bandit leader tried threatening Vaughn, Rhys stepped between the two of them and the guy backed off. And during the death race, Rhys might not have been with him, as they'd gotten separated, but he was still there, just in a different part of the area. And Fiona was with him, and while he didn't trust her very much to keep him safe, after revealing that the money was locked onto his bio-signature and there was a bomb hidden in the case that would go off if he wasn't the one opening the case, then she seemed rather concerned with keeping him alive. So, there was that.

And out in the desert, again, Rhys was there. Even when he was digging his own grave – a terrible, terrible thought – he had faith that Rhys would somehow get them out of that situation, like he always did.

But now…

He is alone.

It's just him and Sasha, surrounded by people with guns. And Loader Bot is motionless on the floor.

There's no way out of this that Vaughn can see.

And they're going to die here, and for some reason all he can think about is that Rhys still hasn't forgiven him.

He's ripped out of his thoughts quite suddenly when Vasquez comes marching through the door from the hallway he went down, looking quite livid.

There's also a very distinctive lack of Rhys.

Vaughn's stomach drops.

He's dead.

Vasquez killed Rhys and there wasn't anything Vaughn could do about it.

August is suddenly there, as well – having returned from the other hallway.

"Where's Fiona?" Sasha snaps.

Where's Rhys?Vaughn wants to add, but his voice is lodged somewhere behind the lump in his throat, and he can't find the words. Mostly because he doesn't want to hear the answer.

Rhys is dead; what's it matter where he is? Vasquez already said he wants to take the body back to Helios. Because people are interested in what's in Rhys's head, and killing him doesn't concern them. They just want the AI version of Handsome Jack.

Vasquez growls and faces the large window in the room. Vaughn noticed it when they first entered, but it was in the background, the room beyond mostly dark, so there was no point looking into it. Now the light is clearly on, and as he steps closer to it, he can see-

"Rhys," he breathes, relieved. Rhys is alive.

So is Fiona.

They are standing on separate platforms that are moving toward each other, until they finally connect. Fiona and Rhys speak to each other briefly, and glance toward the window, but Vaughn can't hear what's being said. It's like the glass is soundproof.

But, they're both alive.

And hope re-ignites in Vaughn's chest.

Rhys will figure out how to get out of this.

xXx

Rhys's stomach still hurts from that sharp hit from Vasquez he received in the hallway, but he takes in a slow breath and looks through the window across this strange room they're in. Vaughn looks… relieved, it seems. And unharmed, which is good, although now Vasquez is waving his gun around, glaring at Rhys through the glass.

Asshole.

Rhys looks at Fiona, and they move wordlessly toward the opposite sides of the platform to start pushing the pieces together. The cylinder upon which Rhys's piece rests is a lot heavier than it looks, considering it moved apart so easily when the platforms combined. It's very heavy, and he huffs as he pushes it closer to Fiona's piece, which she is also moving toward the center.

Finally, their pieces connect.

There's nothing overly spectacular about it. The cylinders just combine, and Rhys steps back, frowning at it. Fiona sends a look his way as the pieces glow. The light is blinding, and when it finally dies down enough that they can see correctly, a sphere of some sort is waiting for them.

"A metal sphere…?" Rhys mutters, mostly to himself.

It's just hovering there, in the center of the platform.

"And this is supposed to lead us to a vault?" Fiona asks, frowning at the floating sphere.

Rhys shrugs. "Maybe it can be a bargaining chip."

"Huh?"

He sighs and nods toward the window. Fiona glances over, her expression tightening as August stands next to her sister.

"Right," she says softly. "A bargaining chip. Well, grab it."

Why me?He thinks, before he moves to do as she said.

As soon as his metallic fingers touch the sphere, however, it drops – whatever energy that was holding it in place suddenly leaving it. It hits the ground and rolls toward the edge of their little floating platform, and yeah – that's a long way down. He hurries over and manages to catch it just before it falls over the edge.

There are alarms going off now.

"Gortys Project compromised," a robotic voice says, coming from nowhere in particular.

"It did not like that, Rhysie," Jack says helpfully. "It didn't like that at all."

"No, no, hey, see, it's fine," Rhys rambles as little security robots start hovering in front of him, eying him with red eyes. They remind him almost of the cleaning bots up on Hyperion – small-ish, but with a distinct look, almost a triangle of sorts, but rounded. And they definitely have guns.

Which are pointed at him.

Oh. Great.

"Hey!" Fiona shouts suddenly, and Rhys looks over to find her staring at the window. Following her gaze, he realizes that there are bots in that room, too, aiming at everyone in there, and that includes Vaughn and Sasha. Sasha currently has a gun aimed at her that does not belong to a bot – instead, August is aiming at her, gun practically held to her head, despite the dangerous bots behind him.

Rhys's eyes narrow. This is not good.

The bots haven't fired on them yet, but it definitely doesn't look good right now. He needs to think of a way out of here.

But how?

How are they going to get out of this?

Fiona suddenly grabs the sphere from his hands. The sudden loss of the cool weight leaves him gaping for a moment, before he turns to find her holding up a grenade as well.

What the hell is she thinking?

"What the hell are you doing?" he hisses at her.

She's not looking at him, though. Instead she's watching the window. He turns his gaze back toward there and realizes Vaughn is now being held up against Vasquez. Vasquez has an arm around his neck, keeping him in place, and a gun against his temple, and his look is murderous.

What – does he think Rhys planned this? None of this was his idea!

He growls.

"Rhysie, you gotta let me into your subsystems," Jack says in his ear suddenly. "We can take over this whole facility but you gotta let me in. I can almost guarantee no one will die… unless you want them to. Probably. Whatever, just let me in."

Rhys hesitates.

Fiona has a grenade. If she has a plan… he's not sure he wants to be exploded right now. What is her plan?

He doesn't know if she has a plan, and he knows Jack has a plan.

Trusting Jack can't be a good idea, but really, it's a plan and it's all he has right now.

He has to go with that.

"Okay," he whispers softly, ECHO-eye activating.

"You talking to me?" Jack asks as Rhys glances at him out of the corner of his eye.

"Yes," Rhys says, making sure Fiona can't hear him. "Do it."

Jack laughs almost giddily. He's too happy about this.

Rhys doesn't know what Jack does, but suddenly there's a surge of something flooding through him. It's electric and powerful and intense. Overwhelming. His ECHO-eye has never felt so alive, and he's never felt this much raw power flooding through him before. It is… intoxicating, in its own way. And terrifying. Definitely terrifying.

But still amazing.

His robotic hand is moving, and he's not in control of it. Jack is moving it. Flexing the fingers, twisting the hand a little, getting used to moving it. And he's still laughing. Loudly.

Thank god Rhys is the only one who can hear him.

The bots seem to stutter mid-air, before they turn, the red lights turning golden. And they fly away from the platform.

"How are you doing that?" Fiona asks, shocked.

"I'm not… really…" Rhys says uncertainly, still feeling that overwhelming something shooting through his system. The power at his fingertips… it's incredible.

He raises his flesh hand, aiming it toward the control panel off to the side, clearly out of reach for a normal person. But Rhys is not normal. The control panel flares to life, and then there's a long, heavy prong supporting the platform they're on. And then they're moving toward the window and the force field it has.

With a thought, they break through the window and force field. The way it shatters throws everyone back and to the ground. The power flows through him, and it's absolutely wonderful. He feels numb with it, dizzy with it, consumed with it.

Vasquez's stupid face is there, looking up at him.

Rhys smirks and raises his metallic hand, the palm open and pulsating the same light blue color as his ECHO-eye. One of the bots shoots Vasquez in the arm, and suddenly he has only one arm. There's blood gushing everywhere, and the smirk on Rhys's face grows. Oh. That. That is exhilarating. That is… intoxicating. That is…

That is power…

[Yes, Rhysie, that is power.]

Jack's voice is so very suddening his head. It's not spoken words even though Jack is still laughing right next to him as they step off the platform. Rhys doesn't have much time to think about it, because as soon as they step off the platform, everything flickers. His eyesight in his ECHO-eye goes dark momentarily before it comes back to life, and he doesn't have that incredible rush of power like he did before. It's still there, don't get him wrong, but it's more in the background now.

He's not in control of the bots anymore. Instead of golden eyes, they now have blue eyes.

And Jack's still fucking laughing.

And then it just – kind of stops. The power fades from his body as Jack takes a breath, actually taking a step back like he's exhausted himself in some way.

"Don't worry, kiddo," Jack says to him. "I left you one. It's a little on the dumpy side, but I figured it's perfect for you."

Said dumpy bot flies up to Rhys. It's the smallest of all the bots – a tinier version of the others. It looks like it was an old version which was scrapped, but one managed to stick around. Definitely dumpy. Does it even work?

Rhys raises his metallic hand. The palm opens, and a screen pops up.

"Alright, Dumpy," Rhys says, smirking at the little robot, "let's see what you've got."

And then he's controlling Dumpy – helping it fly around the other robots which have decided to turn against everyone, now that no one is controlling them. Dumpy might be small but it packs quite a punch. It does this electric shot on the other robots, knocking them out of the sky, and since it's smaller and faster than the others, it nimbly dodges their attacks.

The 'universal remote' is on the ground. Rhys sees it through Dumpy's eyes.

With one shot the remote is gone, and Loader Bot gets to his feet, giving him a thumbs up.

Vasquez is crawling into a corner, holding onto what was once his right arm. At the elbow, the lower half is missing, shot off by one of those bots.

If Vasquez was a different person, Rhys would probably feel at least a flicker of regret and remorse for what he did. After all, he knows how it feels to lose a limb. But as it is, it'sVasquez, and he can't muster up any pity. The guy deserves everything he gets.

Rhys could kill him now.

But despite everything… Rhys is not a killer.

He is not fond of violence. What purpose does it serve?

So he calls Dumpy back to him.

On the way back, Dumpy gets shot by another bot.

It lands in a crumpled heap in front of Rhys. Rhys swallows and carefully reaches out, picking up the damaged little bot, before stuffing it in his pocket, since it's small enough to fit. He can fix Dumpy. He can. He's not really an engineer, but he knows enough. More than anyone else with them, at any rate.

And Jack probably knows a lot about building robots.

Loader Bot grabs the statue in the center of the room, and pushes it over, flinging it at the remaining gunmen. The gunmen are either crushed or manage to make it out of the way – Rhys doesn't look to see what happened.

Instead, Loader Bot grabs them all in his arms, making a rather tight squeeze, and flies very low to the ground on the way out of the building. It's obvious it's a struggle for the bot to carry this many people at once.

Loader Bot nearly crashes into the caravan, but manages to stop in time. He puts everyone down and climbs on top of the caravan so he can travel with them again.

Rhys heads toward the forgotten red car he stole from Vasquez in the desert. That makes two cars he's stolen from that guy. But he deserves it. He's such an asshole.

Vaughn follows him to the car, and they both climb in.

Then they're all quickly leaving the town of Old Haven, kicking up dirt in their wake.

"What just happened?" Vaughn asks a few minutes later, still pumped with adrenaline. "How did you do that? That was amazing!"

And he sounds so excited.

Rhys smirks to himself.

"It was pretty awesome, wasn't it, cupcake?" Jack asks from the backseat, making Rhys jerk the wheel as he wasn't aware of the hologram's presence until then.

"Ahh!" Vaughn shouts before calming. "Oh. Hey. Don't jerk the wheel, bro, not cool."

"Sorry," Rhys apologizes. "Jack startled me."

"Come on, pumpkin – you have to admit that was pretty fun."

And the strange thing is, it was fun. Intoxicating. Breathtaking. The power…

Rhys grits his teeth against admitting it. He should not feel so alive when Jack took partial control of him. Just because he had a power boost, in a way, that doesn't mean he had to enjoy it as much as he did. He shot off Vasquez's arm, for crying out loud! And he liked it.

It was satisfactory.

What is wrong with him?

"Uh… Rhys… the steering wheel… you're gonna break it," Vaughn says slowly.

Rhys realizes his metallic hand is indeed going to break the wheel if he's not careful. Huh. He loosens his grip. His robotic hand is really a lot stronger than his flesh hand, but somehow he keeps forgetting that. Maybe instead of punching that one bandit – back when they first arrived on Pandora – with his left hand, he should have used his robotic right hand. He'll do that next time, even if he's not really right handed.

It would also take the pain away from hitting someone. His knuckles hurt for hours after punching that guy in the face.

"Something wrong, bro?"

Rhys shakes his head. "Everything's fine."

"Damn right it is," Jack says. "That was awesome. You can't tell me it wasn't. I know you enjoyed it."

The sad thing is, Jack is completely right. Rhys did enjoy it. And he shouldn't have. He shouldn't have enjoyed it at all, let alone as much as he did. Because he took away half of Vasquez's arm. He reveled in the way the blood spurted into the air.

Hell, he even smiled!

"Rhys?"

He takes in a slow breath. "I'm fine."

"Are you sure? Because you don't look fine."

"I'm fine."

He doesn't mean to snap. He doesn't like snapping at Vaughn. Nevertheless, that's how it comes out.

"Sorry," he mutters. "Sorry. I didn't mean to snap."

"Stop apologizing," Jack groans. "He betrayed you, or have you forgotten that, Rhysie?"

"It's fine," Vaughn tells him, oblivious to Jack's words. "It's been a rough day."

It really has. A rough, long day. Rhys is ready for it to be over, but it won't even be nightfall for a few more hours yet. Pandoran days are just terrible. Absolutely terrible.

They drive in silence for a while – it's not as tense or awkward as it was before, thankfully. Rhys is grateful for the silence, to be honest. It gives him time to think. Even Jack is silent, but that might be because he's busy attempting to see if he can influence Vaughn in any way by jabbing his hand through his head. Except, of course, Vaughn can't feel him because he's a hologram inside Rhys's head.

That doesn't stop Jack from trying.

And Rhys finds himself trying not to laugh.

"What's so funny?" Vaughn asks, confused, when he actually snickers, unable to hold it back anymore.

And then he just bursts out laughing, and Jack's fingers are through Vaughn's nose, poking out of his face, wiggling.

"Nothing," he says. "I just thought of something funny."

Jack's hand does a karate chop move through Vaughn's head, made more pronounced by the way Vaughn turns his head to regard Rhys properly. "What? Do I have something on my face?"

Rhys laughs again, loudly. "Jack, I'm pretty sure that's a waste of time."

"What is?" Vaughn asks, confused.

Rhys shakes his head. "Jack's just – being silly."

"Excuse you," Jack says, sounding appalled. "I am not silly. I'm trying to give this asshole a headache."

"Well, it's not working," Rhys replies. "So you can stop."

"What's not working?" Vaughn asks.

"Nothing, nothing."

"Is it working? I think it's working," Jack says.

"It's really not," Rhys tells him, shaking his head, returning his attention back toward the front, and the caravan leading the way. He's not sure where they're going, but the location doesn't really matter.

Jack finally stops, sitting back with a sigh. "Why are we even following those two, anyway?"

Rhys isn't really sure. Vaughn's with him in the car, and they already went to the Atlas base and got attacked… so there's really no reason to follow them anymore. And yet…

"They have the sphere," Rhys says.

"Well, yeah," Vaughn says, like he's forgotten somehow.

"Ahhhh, I see," Jack hums thoughtfully. "Keeping them close so you can get the sphere, huh? I like it."

That's not the only reason Rhys is following them, but if that's what Jack wants to think, then that's fine for now. Because Rhys isn't entirely sure why he's sticking with the girls. It wasn't like they came looking for them in the desert, after all. So why are they sticking together now, after everything has fallen apart?

Well, he can think of one reason. He doesn't know where they're going. He knows little about where to go on Pandora; the girls grew up here, so they at least know their way around if nothing else. So for now, he'll follow them. He has nowhere else to go.

He's not sure how long they drive.

When they finally stop, the sun is finally setting, beginning the long night cycle. It has been a very long day, and Rhys just wants to sleep and put it behind him. It's been the day from hell, starting with waking in a cave, to getting caught by Vasquez, learning Vaughn betrayed him, finding the girls, finding that Atlas facility, getting recaptured by Vasquez, striking that deal with Jack and taking control of the security bots…

Yeah, along fucking day.

Rhys is so tired.

"Uh… Rhys?"

He grunts in response.

"I can… I do know how to drive, if you want to switch up? We can catch up to the girls in this no problem if we stop for a second," Vaughn offers somewhat tentatively, and that makes Rhys feel bad because Vaughn should never be tentative with him… but it's been a long day and he's too tired to care.

"Uh… right. Yeah, okay," he mumbles around a wide yawn, lifting his foot off the accelerator to instead tap the brake. The car slows, and the caravan speeds away from them. A part of Rhys wonders if the girls will even notice that they aren't right behind them anymore; another part wonders if they'll even care, if they'll slow down or just keep going.

Thinking about it is not a good idea, though. It's just going to make him angry again.

They have the sphere, and their caravan back to themselves, and they escaped with their lives. They really have no reason to wait for Rhys and Vaughn. They have everything. Leaving the guys in the dust would be so easy for them.

Rhys's robotic hand threatens to crush the steering wheel again. He relaxes his grip (with considerable effort) and brings the car to a stop, forcing the driver side door open. He steps out of the car with a yawn and stretches gratefully. The car is nice and all, but he is taller than Vasquez and has long legs – stilts, as they are sometimes called. He's very tall. So being cramped in a car for a long time is uncomfortable.

He walks around the front of the car, passing Vaughn as the smaller guy moves toward the driver's seat. A moment later they're both settled back in the car, and they pull away again.

It takes a moment for Vaughn to adjust the seat so his shorter legs can reach the pedals. Rhys scoots his seat as far back as it can go, and tilts the back enough that he is at a much more comfortable angle. Ah, yes, that's nice. And now he doesn't have to worry about keeping his eyes on the road or the caravan; he can actually relax.

"What are you doing, cupcake?" Jack asks, suddenly in the backseat again.

His blue glow is much more prominent in the dying light.

"Get some sleep, Rhys," Vaughn says quietly. "I'll wake you if there's trouble or when we stop."

A part of Rhys wants to argue, because there's still that part of him that's angry with Vaughn. A part of him that remembers being left behind in the caravan, remembers being left behindagainafter that, andagainat the Atlas facility, when everyone else ran inside. A part of him is still angry about that. He does not like being left behind.

Nevertheless, he trusts Vaughn, for now. He's too tired to care.

So he nods, mumbles a quick, "thanks", and lets his eyes fall shut.

"Rhysie, what the hell are you doing?"

"Gonna sleep, Jack," Rhys mutters under his breath.

"Huh?" Vaughn asks.

"Nothing. Wake me in a few hours if we're still driving."

He settles more against the chair, and lets the whispers of sleep take him.

xXx

Rhys dreams of Helios.

He dreams of a simpler time.

Yvette and Vaughn during their weekly pizza night.

Their weekly game night.

Of all the times Yvette has mooched off their lunches, all the times he's paid for her food.

He dreams of friendly ribbing and bickering. He dreams of their heated fights.

He dreams of home.

And he misses it, terribly.

Through every scene in his dreams, he's struck by a pang of want, and it's raw and aching and powerful.

And then Jack's laughing the background. "Stick with me, Rhysie, and we'll both go home."

And this is just a dream but in his dream – in his dream he agrees.

And Jack isn't a blue hologram out of the corner of his eye. He's real and whole and made of flesh and blood. And he's wearing his trademark mask, blue and green eyes looking back at Rhys – looking up and down the length of his body like he's some piece of meat, and he doesn't even care because he wants to go home.

"Pandora sucks, huh, kiddo?"

"I hate it here," Rhys says, and his voice echoes around them a few times. Darkness falls around them, the only visible things himself and Jack like they're standing on a black platform of some kind.

"We both do, kiddo," Jack says with a nod. "This shithole of a planet is the absolute worst. I don't know why I ever bothered trying to save it."

Rhys stays silent, mostly because, even though this is a dream, pissing off Handsome Jack isn't wise.

And if you die in a dream don't you die in real life? And Jack looks pretty real at the moment, so best not to tempt fate lest the man strangle him, because that's what Handsome Jack does.

A part of Rhys… a part of Rhys wants to be like him. Just like him.

There's a sudden weight on his left shoulder. He glances over but no one is there. Jack is still in front of him.

"Rhys – time to wake up…" a voice cuts through the dark fog suddenly around him.

Rhys looks back toward Jack, but the man is gone.

Everything fades away.


	5. The Trouble with Bandits

Fiona looks in the rear-view mirror, noticing for the first time that Rhys and Vaughn are no longer behind them. There's a stretch of empty desert lit by the large moon, Elpis, and that's it. There's a strange, sudden flicker of panic deep in her stomach, which she stifles by gritting her teeth and slamming on the brakes. She doesn't know how long they haven't been behind her; she doesn't usually check the rear-view mirrors since she's usually not the one driving this caravan – Sasha likes to drive – but Sasha went to sleep about an hour ago… and now Fiona has lost the boys.

She's not entirely sure why she cares. It's not like she should.

They are from Hyperion – fucking Hyperion. And they cost her a lot of money with the vault key deal. Hyperions can't be trusted. They're all evil and manipulative and in it for themselves and these two are no different. They're greedy.

But then… so are Fiona and Sasha. Not as greedy as Felix, who took the money for himself and left his 'daughters' to fend for themselves, but they are greedy. They are con-artists, after all. Of course they're in it for the money. And the only reason they trusted Rhys and Vaughn to help them in the first place was because they shared a common goal of wanting the money.

But now the money is gone… and the sphere, whatever it is, is with them in the caravan.

So technically they don't need the boys.

They could forget about them and move on.

They don't need them anymore.

Except there's a flicker of doubt with that plan, because this is Atlas technology, and while Fiona is street smart and good at getting out of situations alive, she doesn't really know technology. That's Rhys's department, and he seems pretty damn good at it. At first she was skeptical of him; he was a hacker but was clearly in over his head, even with his cybernetic enhancements. But he came through in the end – he plugged that ID drive into his head, and they located the money, and he apparently hacked into the system at that place with the death race, getting himself, Sasha and a vault hunter named Zer0 to the surface so they could find the briefcase of money. He also fought well with his stun baton, according to Sasha, which was… impressive, coming from her sister. Sasha was not easily impressed but she said the Hyperion wasn't 'completely useless'. Which is a lot, coming from her.

So Rhys is handy with technology, and he did go looking for Fiona and Sasha in Hollow Point. Even let them ride back on Loader Bot while he himself walked back alone, which was dangerous.

A part of Fiona… thinks that was noble.

And nobody is noble on Pandora.

That is the problem.

There is a part of Rhys that is almost too good to be true.

And she hates it.

He's definitely greedy – he's Hyperion, after all – but he decided to track them down in Hollow Point instead of going straight to Old Haven. He could have ditched them and been done with it. Instead he went looking for them and saved them from Athena.

And now Fiona has lost them somewhere in the desert… and that niggling worry resurfaces in her mind just as it did when they were separated before, when her grip on Rhys's foot faltered and the two Hyperions went flying out of the back of the broken caravan.

She didn't go looking for them then. It wasn't safe. The caravan was busted to hell and they were running from moonshots, which turned off shortly after, but still – turning back wasn't wise, and she had to look out for herself and her sister. Sasha will always be her main priority, no matter what.

But now… now the caravan is fixed, and there's no reason not to wait, or go looking for them. Except she doesn't know how long they haven't been right behind her.

No reason to not go looking… except every reason.

Every reason to just keep going.

She has Sasha. The caravan is fixed. They have the sphere which might lead them to a vault, which is big money.

She doesn't need them. At all.

And yet…

And yet.

She growls under her breath. The air is silent in the desert at this time of night, the sun finally disappearing. It's chilly. They're Hyperions and it's cold and dangerous alone in the desert. She left them like that before… and didn't really expect to see them alive again.

What's changed since then?

What's different now? She didn't care this much then, so why now?

They came back for me and Sasha…

And Rhys was good with technology. Of course. That's why she wants to find the boys – because she might need their help with this sphere.

That's all. Nothing sentimental or crazy, just a simple plan.

And she's so good with plans.

She's about to turn the caravan around when she notices headlights finally appearing over the hill in the distance. As the lights get closer she notices it's the car Rhys and Vaughn apparently stole from that Hyperion asshole, Vasquez.

And there's this wave of relief which passes through her, which is really uncalled for.

She can't stop the smile from spreading across her face as she presses down on the accelerator again.

xXx

"Rhys – time to wake up…"

Rhys mumbles under his breath as his eyes blink open, the ECHO-eye focusing faster than his human eye. He takes in a slow breath and focuses on Vaughn, who is shifted in the driver's seat enough that he can easily shake Rhys awake. His hand is still on Rhys's shoulder. "Ugh… are we there yet?" he asks through a yawn.

"Kind of," Vaughn tells him, still holding onto his shoulder. "We all need gas, and this town… has some, but the locals are… unfriendly."

"Unfriendly," Rhys mutters, shaking his head, rolling his neck to get the kinks out of it. Something pops and he sighs in relief. "So what's the plan?"

"Fiona says we should steal it," Vaughn says, nodding out the front window. Through the darkness, Rhys can make out Fiona and Sasha waiting outside the caravan with Loader Bot, thanks to the light from Elpis.

"Steal it," Rhys echoes. "From bandits?"

Vaughn shrugs. "We don't really have a lot of options here, Rhys. We're running very low on gas and bandits always hoard it for their technical vehicles. It's not like we can just ask them nicely for it."

This is true, but to hear Vaughn saying this is slightly unsettling.

"Fiona and Sasha think they can sneak in okay, but they want you to stay here and check out that sphere thingy," Vaughn continues, oblivious to Rhys's thoughts.

"And what about you?" Rhys asks slowly.

"They want me to wait in the car," Vaughn mumbles. "Loader Bot is going to be the lookout and if shit hits the fan I'm supposed to have Loader Bot go in and get them, while you get the caravan ready and I follow in the car. We're going to need to leave fast."

Rhys is not sure about this plan.

But he is curious about that sphere, and he really doesn't want to go sneaking through a bandit camp.

So he nods. "Alright, sure, sounds like a plan."

Vaughn smiles and nods toward the girls.

Rhys smiles back and gets out of the car, stretching his long legs before walking toward the girls. It feels so good to be out of the cramped car. At least in the caravan he can stretch his legs and get comfortable.

"Did Vaughn fill you in on the plan?" Fiona asks.

Rhys nods. "Yep, I'm sufficiently filled in. Uh – be careful, I guess."

"We will," Fiona says with a slow smile. "You too – I guess."

Rhys smirks and heads inside the caravan while the girls, hefting their SMG guns, head away from said caravan.

Rhys finds the sphere on the couch, which doubles as the kitchen area. He sits behind the table, sliding across the cushions which are almost too firm to be considered cushions, and lifts the sphere onto the table. It looks so… different, now. It's not floating, or falling after he touched it.

It's just a sphere of some kind.

Red and white.

Nothing too special, really.

He sighs and gets to work.

Scanning it with his ECHO-eye gives him an instant migraine. There's a rush of information too quick for him to properly decipher, and it's gone by the time he blinks, wincing as he brings a hand up to rub at the area surrounding his neural port. A shiver crawls through his spine and suddenly there's a flicker of blue out of the corner of his eye.

Jack's hand lowers, having gone through his shoulder again. He really wishes the guy would stop trying to touch him. It just feels like he's walking through cobwebs.

He's not sure if he feels it, or mentally registers the fact something is passing through him and thus he should feel something… but it's weird either way.

"A lot of fuss for that little thing," Jack says. "I'm not impressed. How is this going to lead us to a vault?"

"I have no idea," Rhys says with a heavy sigh, rubbing tenderly at his head once more. There's a dull ache behind his eyes now, but at least the pain has lessened. He rolls the sphere around on the table, looking at it from every angle, and notices a small patch that's unlike the rest of it. "Well, hello," he says with a smirk, pressing his left index finger against the spot.

It seems to be a button of some sort.

Instantly the sphere rolls away from him, and he jerks away in surprise. It begins to levitate again, spinning slowly as it does so, and Rhys sits back against the short cushions, transfixed. Next to him, Jack is just as motionless and silent.

"Start-up sequence initiated," a robotic, feminine voice says. "Gortys protocol activated. Happy birthday."

There's a bright light, blinding in its brilliance, and when it dissipates, the sphere isn't a sphere anymore.

Instead it's this little robot with a rounded frame and rounded bottom, and two little arms, and big optical blue and black lenses for eyes.

Rhys stares at it, mouth agape.

"Hi! Wow, hey! It's so great to meet you!" the little robot chirps so enthusiastically, waving while its eyes do this odd turning thing, making the pupils wider and curved so it's almost like the little thing is smiling with its eyes.

And it's fucking adorable.

"Cute," Rhys comments, lips twitching upward.

"Thank you!" the little robot, Gortys, replies happily. "You're not so bad yourself. Meow."

Rhys bursts out laughing, unable to stop himself. Oh, wow, really? Did this little robot just say that?

Gortys looks around the room, then, little wheel on her bottom speeding across the table. Rhys catches her before she falls off. Wow. She's heavier than she looks. She was a lot lighter as a sphere.

"Uh, Gortys?"

"Hiii!" Gortys says, turning her focus back to Rhys.

"Uh… hi," Rhys says uncertainly. "Um… what are you programmed to do, exactly?"

"Well… since you activated me, I assume you want to find a vault," Gortys says with that same cheerful tone.

It's cute.

Jack is still silent, but Rhys sees the blue move out of the corner of his eye, so he's still around.

And Gortys can't see him.

Not that he thought she could, really – since, you know, no one else can see Jack, not even Loader Bot.

He puts the little robot on the ground. "Yeah, that," he says, nodding. "Please do that."

"I don't know every detail," Gortys says, "but I was created by Atlas as a last ditch effort to get a leg up on those Hyperion guys." This she leans in to say conspiringly. Rhys smiles nervously.

"Well we are still number one," Jack says finally. "Wait – we are, aren't we? How long have I been out of action?"

Rhys ignores him for now, focusing on the little robot.

"Atlas had facilities all over Pandora working on the pieces of me to get it done faster, but then this lady, Athena, made it a little difficult to assemble by killing every Atlas employee."

Rhys thinks back and remembers Athena. The lady who had Fiona and Sasha cornered in that alleyway. The woman who supposedly killed all those Crimson Lance guys in that Atlas facility they were just in not that long ago. She's seriously bad news.

"Oh-ho-ho," Jack says, "Athena."

Oh. Okay. So Jack knows her too. Great.

"Well," Rhys says, "how many more pieces are there?"

Gortys is incomplete, it seems. She can't find the vault unless she's complete.

Why does everything have to be complicated?

"No idea," Gortys tells him. "But the next piece we need is, uh…"

She wheels off, riding around the interior of the caravan before finally stopping and pointing in a random direction.

"That way!" she says enthusiastically.

Rhys sighs heavily. Okay. So it's going to be like that, huh? Just great.

How much longer is he going to be stuck on Pandora? Granted, Helios isn't all that great, but it's better than this planet right now. It's too chaotic. At least Rhys knows what kind of danger to expect on Helios. He's uncertain here on Pandora.

"Okay," Rhys says, nodding. "Sure, that sounds good, but just, uh – we gotta wait for… the others to come back."

"Others?" Gortys asks excitedly, rolling back up to Rhys. "There are more?!"

"Uh – yes?" he says uncertainly.

This bot is too cute.

"What kind of a bot is this?" Jack asks, scowl evident in his voice. "It's too… nice to do anything lethal."

"That's kind of the point," Rhys mutters.

"What is?" Gortys asks innocently.

Rhys shakes his head. "Nothing, nothing. My uh… The others will be back soon."

I hope.

Gortys looks up at him all wide-eyed and innocent.

Rhys really shouldn't be the one talking to her.

He's going to ruin her; he just knows it.

He's too tarnished for anything innocent.

xXx

An hour later and the others are still not back. How long does it take to sneak into a bandit camp?

Rhys keeps himself busy by chatting with Gortys as he gets to work on the damaged little security bot which is actually smaller than Gortys. What did Jack call it? Oh, right. Dumpy. What a shitty name.

Pun definitely intended, because Rhys is still tired and he's worried about the girls.

He's not sure why, but there's a knot in his stomach and it's been in there since they left.

As time passes it just gets worse.

Rhys isn't an engineer by any meaning of the word, but he knows his way around computers and wires and anything electronical. And this little robot is electronical. It just needs a little rewiring and a power boost, and it should be good to go even though the hull is a bit damaged. But that's just aesthetics for now; he'll do what he can to keep the wiring safe, and worry about how it looks later.

His yellow arm is bulky for a reason. It's an older model, sure, but it also has a built-in mini tool compartment along the forearm. It's partially why it's so heavy. He digs through the tools and quietly hums to himself while he works on the broken robot. After a time Gortys goes silent and just watches him.

"Not bad, cupcake," Jack comments, watching over his shoulder. "But what do you say we give this bot an upgrade?"

"Upgrade?" Rhys asks somewhat absently, still working away inside of the little bot.

"Well, yeah," Jack says. "He's my gift to you, so he needs to be better."

Rhys snorts. He doubts anything is really a gift from Jack, but… well, he did get a robot out of trusting him. Even if it was the smallest of those bots, and did wind up getting shot…

"What do you suggest?" he asks, running a quick scan over the circuitry in the bot. Yeah, everything looks good so far. He just needs to keep mapping out this wire and shove it in… ah, there. That'll work, he hopes.

Again, he's not really an engineer. He's a code monkey. A data miner. A hacker. A programmer of sorts.

Not a builder.

"Well, I suggest-" Jack starts.

Rhys's finger decides to slip then – his flesh one, which is holding back the wires so his robotic index finger, equipped with a little tool, can fix the appropriate circuits. There's this rush of electricity as his skin lands on the exposed wires, and there's a spark of light.

It doesn't hurt, really, but there's a rush of something that goes through him then. It's… confusing as hell, but he doesn't really think much of it as he catches the wires again and starts trying to fix the circuits once more.

Jack, however, can't seem to let it go, which is weird.

"Whoa, Rhysie," Jack says. "You're glowing."

"Uh… thank you?" Rhys comments absently, focused on the task at hand.

"No, Rhysie – you're glowing. Your tattoo is glowing. What the hell, cupcake?"

Rhys frowns, because that doesn't make sense. He brings a hand up to the tattoo on his neck somewhat unconsciously, knowing his others aren't visible through his clothes. "What are you talking about? I just-"

His finger slips again. There's that rush of something again.

"Whoa," Jack says, grinning. "And now your eyes are glowing."

"My ECHO-eye does that," Rhys says, rolling his eyes, fixing his fingers again.

"They're both glowing, cupcake."

"I don't understand what's going on, but do all humans glow like that?" Gortys asks, making Rhys flinch because he momentarily forgot he wasn't alone in the caravan. Great. Now he probably looks crazy, talking to himself.

Rhys can't see his neck, or his eyes, but if his tattoos are glowing, he does have other ones.

Sighing, he loosens the neck of his collared shirt and yanks it down, unbuttoning it enough so that he can look down and see the cylindrical blue marks going across his chest cavity and up toward his collarbone.

The blue marks are, in fact, glowing.

Not very brightly, but definitely glowing. Shimmering. It's… really weird.

"What the hell…?" Rhys asks, staring down at himself.

"Where'd you get those marks, Rhys?" Jack asks, suddenly serious, and whoa, that has to be the first time the guy has actually called him by his name, and not 'cupcake' or 'Rhysie' or something else.

"Uh… I don't… I don't remember," Rhys says, frowning. "I must have gotten them when I was really young. I don't know…"

He just always assumed his parents got him tattoos when he was little, too little to remember any of it. Which is still strange, because his family was never especially wealthy, so why get tattoos?

He never thought about it much.

Now he wishes he did.

"Or you were born with them," Jack says. "Oh, this is good. This is great. You and me, Rhysie cakes! We're going places."

Rhysie cakes?

Great, another nickname.

"These are some weird birthmarks if I was born with them," Rhys says, shaking his head. "Sorry to burst your bubble."

"Oh, you expanded my bubble, pumpkin. You're something special, Rhysie. And I'm the first one to see it."

There's something like pride in Jack's voice and it's really unsettling how much Rhys likes that tone. Because he shouldn't. Because Jack is crazy. But damn it's been so long since someone was really proud of him… and to have it come from the man who was once his idol…

He takes in a slow breath. "I have no idea what you're talking about. I'm not special. I just have fluorescent tattoos, is all."

Jack laughs. "Just do me a favor, cupcake, and don't tell anyone, okay?"

"Uh… why not?"

It's not like Rhys was going to tell anyone – because this is personal, okay, and he doesn't need to be taking his shirt off for people to see glowing tattoos – but still, it seems like an odd thing for Jack to suddenly say.

"Well, do you want everyone gawking at you, babe?" Jack asks.

And babe is definitely new.

What the hell?

"Not really," he answers, frowning at the hologram.

"The buff nerd doesn't know about this, does he?"

"Uh… n-no? I've never been shirtless around him. I'm kind of… I'm…"

"Self-conscious?" Jack asks with a slow smile.

Rhys swallows. "Uh – yeah…"

"Good. I don't want you showing your body to anyone but me, understand?"

"Uh… what?"

What the hell is this?

Jack just smiles. There's nothing sweet or kind about it, but the way he's looking at Rhys right now is… he doesn't even know. It's like Jack wants to… It's… It's predatory, almost. And definitely a little possessive.

Which is just fucking weird, coming from Handsome Jack.

"Uh… Rhys?"

Rhys blinks, turning his attention away from Jack and that smile, instead looking down at Gortys who is watching him carefully. "Yes, Gortys?"

"Is everything okay? You're talking to yourself a lot…"

Rhys sighs; Gortys thinks he's crazy. Great. "Yeah, yeah, everything's okay. I just, uh… I do that sometimes, when I'm… I just do it sometimes. But I'm not crazy."

"I… never said you were?" Gortys tries.

"Never mind. Let's just, uh… keep this between us, okay?" he asks hopefully, because the last thing he needs right now is Gortys telling Fiona and Sasha that he talks to himself. Or that he is currently glowing, because yeah, that hasn't stopped yet. "And uh… don't tell them about the glowing… please."

If he's still glowing when they get back, then… then he'll hurry out of the caravan, hiding his face, holding a hand to his neck to cover that particular tattoo, and he'll even close his eyes if he has to.

"Ohhh, is this a secret?" Gortys asks excitedly. "I've never had secrets before!"

"Yes, yes it's a secret," Rhys says. "Exactly. So… please don't tell anyone?"

"I won't!" Gortys says. "It'll be our little secret!"

Rhys sits back, releasing a relieved breath. "Good, good. Thank you."

There's a moment of awkward silence, and he can feel Jack's eyes on him.

But then that might all literally just be in his head.

He sighs and gets back to work on the little robot.

After connecting a few more wires – this time without his fingers slipping, damn bulky fingers – the bot on the table spurs into life, moving so suddenly Rhys bites down hard on his tongue to keep from shouting out as he lunges backward in the seat.

"Nice one, Rhysie," Jack says, standing next to him, legs through the cushions, arms folded over his chest as he eyes the little bot. "It's actually working again. Nice to know you have some brains after all, kiddo."

Rhys shakes his head, watching the bot as it flies around the room for a moment before its little golden eye focuses on Rhys. It flies toward his face and he cowers back, remembering what this little thing can do. He's not in control of it right now; it might be pissed that he got it shot, if it's sentient like Loader Bot and Gortys.

For some reason a lot of the robots are becoming more and more sentient lately, ever since Jack died. It's… strange.

The bot doesn't attack him, though. Instead it bumps lightly into his face before backing off, and there's this staticky sound which is really painful to Rhys's ears.

"He likes you!" Gortys gushes. "That is so cute! He says you saved his life, Rhys! He wants to hug you but he doesn't have arms."

So that's what the bumping was. Well… okay then.

Rhys looks at the flying little bot. "No speech function, huh?"

Another painful sound.

"He says it was damaged," Gortys says. "But you can fix that, right, Rhys?"

"I'll, uh… I'll work on it," Rhys says with a nod. He has no idea if he can fix it, but he'll try.

The bot flies toward him again. Recognizing it for the attempt it is, Rhys brings his arms up and holds onto the little bot, smiling down at it.

"Aw, I like you, too," he says. "We need a name for you, little guy."

Because Dumpy is the worst name. And no. He's not calling anyone that, robot or not.

More painful noise.

Rhys winces. "Okay, buddy – I like you and all, but please, stop trying to talk. That hurts. I'll try to fix it as soon as I can but in the meantime… is there any other way you can communicate?"

The bot seems confused for a moment, that unblinking optical sphere staring back at him. Then a series of golden symbols flash across its face, like a projector of some kind. And Rhys laughs because that reminds him of Zer0, right down to the faces the little bot is making.

And the little heart. Zer0 gave him a little heart after he called the guy cool.

"There we go," Rhys says. "Gortys, what should we name him?"

"Dumpy is a perfectly fine name," Jack says.

Rhys ignores him.

"Oh! I get to name him?" Gortys asks, eyes wide. "Are… Are you sure?" She sounds positively thrilled.

"Within reason," Rhys says. "We have to agree on the name. So does my new little buddy."

Gortys pauses to think about it, until suddenly the little bot is flying toward the door, making angry, painful sounds as an angry emoticon, complete with angry brows, flashes across its face.

Rhys gets to his feet, frowning. "Something wrong, little guy?"

It's then that Rhys hears it – gunshots, in the distance but closer than he would like. Bandits, then. Coming this way.

Something has gone wrong.

"You guys stay in here," Rhys says, pulling out his stun baton. "I'll check this out."

The safe thing to do is to stay in the caravan, but Vaughn is outside, so are the girls and Loader Bot, and Rhys needs to know what's going on. But he isn't going to drag these two small bots into a fight, even if his new little buddy is able to shoot strange, electric shots.

An unhappy frown flashes across the new little bot's face as it hovers near Rhys's shoulder.

"Aw, don't worry, buddy, I'll be fine," Rhys says with a smile.

He can't help it. He likes that bot. He likes robots in general. They're just… more genuine than people, somehow.

"Am I still glowing?" Rhys asks, to no one in particular, as he looks down at himself. His tattoos seem to have stopped glowing, finally.

"Nope," Jack says.

"Is there something wrong?" Gortys asks, wheeling toward him.

Rhys shakes his head. "Everything's fine, I just need you to stay here, okay? Can you do that for me? It's important."

Gortys does her equivalent of a nod, which is really just her hands moving up and down. "Yes! I'll stay here."

"Keep baby bot with you," Rhys says, before looking at said 'baby bot'. "You stay with Gortys, okay? Protect her. Don't let anyone get near her."

A determined face. Wow. Little bot went all out on that one.

Rhys smiles. "Great. I'm just going to step outside real quick…"

He opens the door to the caravan and steps outside, closing the door behind him quietly to make sure the bots stay in there. Jack flickers to life next to him, leaning against the caravan, arms folded across his chest.

"You're pretty fond of robots, huh, kid?"

"Robots are easier than people," Rhys says honestly. "I can… trust them more than humans. I mean – at least robots are programmed to stab you in the back. Friends just… just…"

"Friends will be your downfall, Rhysie," Jack warns. "Don't trust anyone. This is Pandora; it's not about trust. That'll get you killed."

Rhys runs his robotic hand through his hair, holding onto the stun baton with semi-limp left fingers.

More gunshots, closer by this time. If he squints he can make out the muzzle flare.

Vaughn sticks his head out of Vasquez's car. "What do we do, Rhys? Loader Bot already went that way…"

What do we do?

Rhys doesn't know.

He doesn't really have a plan, which is… strange. He likes to cover all the bases and have a plan, but he was asleep when the plan was discussed and was tired and half out of it when he woke up… so he doesn't really have a plan.

Plus he doesn't even have a gun, so what good is he, anyway?

And that really sucks.

"At the first sign of bandits, we leave," Rhys says finally. "The girls are with Loader Bot; he can carry them easily enough. We'll hide somewhere in the hills, and they'll find us. If the girls get here first, then all the better, right?"

Vaughn hesitates. "I mean… I guess. Okay. So are you driving the caravan, then?"

Rhys nods. "Yeah, I'll do that. Keep your head low, buddy. That sounds like a lot of gunfire."

Vaughn nods, sticking his head back inside the car. Carefully, he turns the car on, revving the engine slightly. Thankfully it's not too loud. Not that it really matters right now anyway. Rhys heads back inside the caravan, moving through it toward the front so he can climb into the driver's seat.

The last time he drove this thing, it was so he could use his ECHO-eye to avoid the moonshots. Being in this seat didn't help him when the boost was active, though, and after a bumpy patch, he was sent flying from the seat and ultimately out of the caravan and into the hot desert sun with Vaughn.

Now he sits in the seat and turns on the caravan. There's a slight rumble as it comes to life; Scooter does good work. This thing was an absolute mess the last time Rhys was in it.

Baby bot is currently hovering over his shoulder, watching what he's doing. Gortys is at his feet, not quite tall enough to see out the window.

"What are we doing?" Gortys asks.

It's like having two little puppies following him around.

Except they talk. Or, one of them does.

"We're leaving," Rhys says, before moving the caravan, moving forward and turning just enough so that the front window is now facing the direction of the bandits. This way he can see them coming from here. The sound of gunshots is definitely getting closer, and louder.

He squints, noticing figures along the hilltop ahead of them.

There is no telltale white hat, nor a Loader Bot.

Not the girls, then.

Bandits.

Rhys grits his teeth, fingers tightening on the wheel.

Where are the girls? Where's Loader Bot?

The bandits get closer, but still no sign of the girls. Rhys growls under his breath and slams his foot down on the accelerator, yanking sharply on the wheel so he can turn away from the gunfire, which is now focused on the caravan. Bullets ricochet off the metal hull.

"Whoa!" Gortys says, rolling backward slightly at the sudden acceleration.

Rhys looks in the rear-view mirror, and sure enough, Vaughn is behind him. That's good, at least.

They drive away from the hillside and further into the desert, before they hide in a valley of sorts, hills all around them, and Rhys turns off the caravan, killing the lights. They'll wait here for the girls. If the bandits show back up, they'll move further away.

Hopefully the girls show up before the bandits do.

"Hey, Du-… er, you," Rhys says, gesturing at the little flying robot, "your weapons still work? Because I don't have a gun and neither does Vaughn."

The girls took the only guns they had.

But that's okay, Rhys reasons; it's not like Rhys is very talented with guns anyway.

He's not sure about Vaughn. Once upon a time he would have said Vaughn was terrible with them, but after coming to Pandora and everything… well, he's just not sure.

Either way, they don't have any guns anyway.

The little bot flashes a smiley emoticon, and Rhys smirks.

"Alright, well, there's that, at least."

At least they aren't completely defenseless.

"What's the plan here, Rhysie?" Jack asks.

Rhys grits his teeth again, because he honestly doesn't know. They need gas. The girls went to get the gas. They can't leave without the girls. So what can he do?

Go get them and the gas.

They might have been captured. Or something.

If he can't find them he can at least find the gas and get away from this bandit camp long enough to come up with a better plan.

"How far away is the bandit camp?" Rhys asks aloud, even though he's pretty sure no one here has the answer. He releases his grip on the wheel and holds up his robotic palm.

Images from the satellite system on Helios flashes from his palm. He rotates it over the desert he assumes they're in, and zooms in. These images are old, but they should give him the basic layout of the area.

Ah, there!

He spots the camp. It's not too large, but there's a watch tower and a wall surrounding it. Along with a gate. Sasha and Fiona had to have snuck in, so how…? He rotates the image more and smiles. Ah, there. That's how they got in.

Part of the wall is a bit run down; if one is quiet and careful, they could climb up the side. Getting out… he doesn't have a good view of the other side of the wall, not from this angle, but at least he has a way in on the south side of the camp.

And they are currently… east of the camp.

Rhys gets to his feet.

"Rhysie?" Jack asks.

"I'm going to the camp."

"Not that I don't admire your gusto, kid, but uh – all you have is that little stun baton," Jack says. "Impressive as it is, it's not exactly a gun."

Rhys looks at the little unnamed flying robot. "You can come with me."

"What about me?" Gortys asks cheerfully, unaware of the severity of the situation. "Can I come too?"

"You stay here," Rhys says, making sure to soften his tone and smile at the bot. "I need you to hold down the fort. Think you can do that for me?"

Gortys's eyes tilt into that smile again. "I can do that! I won't let you down!"

She wheels off, and Rhys smiles after her before looking at the little flying robot, still unnamed.

"Okay, BB," he says, short for 'baby bot' for now, "let's go."

He grabs tight to his stun baton and opens the door of the caravan. BB follows him out, hovering just over his shoulder, making little noises.

Vaughn gets out of the car, frowning at him. "Uh – what are you doing? And what…? You got that working again?"

Rhys nods. "Yes I did."

BB flies toward Vaughn, hovering in front of him before making some more loud painful sounds. Vaughn winces, scowling at it.

BB's guns are suddenly activated; an alert pops up in Rhys's ECHO-eye, since he was previously tapped into the little bot's systems.

"Whoa!" he says. "BB, no, hey – Vaughn's not the enemy. He's a friend. A friend."

Vaughn backs up from the bot, looking at Rhys then back at the bot uncertainly.

BB hovers there a moment longer before the weapons go offline. For now. The bot makes another loud noise before turning and flying back to Rhys's side.

"It was going to attack me?" Vaughn asks.

"He's just… nervous? I think," Rhys says, shaking his head.

"When did you get that working?"

"I dunno, not that long ago?"

"In the caravan?"

"Yes?"

Vaughn blinks at him. "I thought you were working on the sphere?"

"Oh, pfft, that's taken care of," Rhys says, waving his hand dismissively. "Gortys is waiting in the caravan."

"What do you – Gortys?" Vaughn asks, confused.

"Oh, uh – the sphere turned out to be a cute little robot," Rhys says, realizing Vaughn doesn't know about Gortys yet. No one does.

Vaughn stares at him for a moment, before smirking. "You've been busy."

"A bit," Rhys says, shrugging. "Anyway – I'm going to go look for the girls, and the fuel."

"Wha-? You can't," Vaughn says, frowning. "You don't have any weapons and you don't even know where you're going!"

"I have BB," Rhys says, gesturing at said robot. "And the stun-baton. And I do know where the camp is, and I know how to get into it."

Getting out is the problem.

Vaughn is staring at him again. "You can't," he repeats.

Which is irritating.

"I didn't ask for permission," Rhys says somewhat sharply. "We can't just sit here."

"What if bandits come here while you're gone?" Vaughn asks. "Or the girls?"

Hmm. Rhys didn't think of that.

If Rhys and BB leave, they'll leave Vaughn and Gortys completely unprotected. Fuck.

He bites his lower lip, hesitating.

"BB, you stay here," he finally says. "Keep an eye on Vaughn and Gortys."

The little bot gives him an angry emoticon.

"You can't go in there alone," Vaughn says, frowning, and BB beeps in agreement. "You don't even have a gun."

"Then what do you want from me?" Rhys snaps.

"Just wait here," Vaughn says softly. "I'm sure the girls will show up soon. They have Loader Bot, after all. And guns."

That's what worries Rhys, though. They have Loader Bot, and guns, and they're still not back yet. The bandits made it to the caravan first. That's not a good sign.

"If we just wait here the bandits will eventually find us," Rhys tells him. "And we need the fuel to get further away. It's not safe just sitting here. Look… wait in the caravan, and at the first sign of trouble, get out of here and don't look back."

Vaughn stares at him again. "Are you kidding me?"

Rhys scowls.

"I'm not leaving you behind," Vaughn tells him firmly, folding his arms across his chest, and suddenly Jack's laughing behind Rhys.

"Oh, that's rich, isn't it, Rhysie cakes?" the hologram asks. "After he sold you out and everything. He was more than willing to leave you behind then, wasn't he? And now he expects you to believe this?" More laughter.

Rhys grits his teeth. "Wait in the caravan, and leave if there's trouble," he repeats. "No point in all of us dying. Look after Gortys." He looks at the little flying bot. "You stay with Vaughn and Gortys, okay?"

More angry emoticons.

Rhys smiles fondly at the thing. "I'll be fine."

That's a complete and blatant lie, but he has to go, and he can't just leave all of them unprotected. He can't do that to Gortys and Vaughn, even if Vaughn did betray him once already. Rhys isn't like that. He won't just leave them unguarded if he can help it.

And he won't even be angry when Vaughn drives away.

"This is crazy," Vaughn says. "Jack!"

"Oh, fuck me, what does this nerd want?" Jack asks, coming to stand next to Rhys. Vaughn is currently looking around like Jack might just suddenly materialize in front of him, but even if he did, Vaughn wouldn't be able to see him.

"He's here," Rhys says, just as confused as Jack.

"Good – then, uh, Jack… could you please talk some sense into Rhys? He's going to get himself killed and that means you'll die too."

"I'm right here, you don't have to talk about me like I'm not right-" Rhys starts.

"Ohhh he thinks I don't agree with this plan, that's rich," Jack laughs. "But he does have a point, cupcake. If you die, I die, and I like living. In whatever state of being I'm in right now. So take the dumpy bot with you. The buff nerd has the getaway vehicle, which is… I don't trust him, and you shouldn't either, but he can get away if he has to, if that's what you're worried about."

That's probably the most Jack has spoken to him in a single stretch, without Rhys getting a word in edgewise.

"Alright, fine," he mutters, and there's this look of hope on Vaughn's face. "BB, I guess you're coming with me. Vaughn, you still have the getaway vehicle."

The look on Vaughn's face shatters. "What? No, you-"

"I don't need your permission," Rhys informs him flatly, turning on his heel to walk away, in the direction of the bandit camp. There's the soft whir of BB following after him. "I'll be back, or I won't. Look out for Gortys."

"Rhys, wait," Vaughn says. "This is crazy!" Vaughn's footfalls follow after him.

Rhys sighs and turns. Why is Vaughn being so difficult? It's not like they have a lot of options here.

"Stay here," he says, narrowing his eyes at Vaughn. "At the first sign of trouble get yourself and Gortys out of here. Keep that little bot safe."

With that, he waves and turns back in the direction he was going. Vaughn moves to follow him but BB rushes at him, beeping loudly, and Vaughn stops.

That's the end of the argument.

Rhys disappears over the hilltop.


	6. A Psycho Situation

The bandit camp is quiet for the most part, which is surprising. It seems the bandits have congratulated themselves on a job well done, and have consumed too much rakk ale. It happens. A lot, on this planet, but also on Helios. But with much, much better alcohol.

This makes Rhys's job a lot easier, though, since everyone has passed out thanks to the alcohol. He wonders, briefly, what they were celebrating. It doesn't matter, though – it's not why he's here. He's here for the fuel, and if he can find them, the girls.

Leaving the girls behind is wrong, even if they did leave him and Vaughn alone in the desert for so long. He's not like them, though. He's not like that. If anything, he's too loyal, and he knows that. He stayed loyal to a dead man, after all.

Jack flickers next to him, walking in pace with him.

"So what's the plan, kiddo?"

Rhys grits his teeth, eyeing the slumbering bandits and psychos as he walks past them quietly.

"Welllll?" Jack drawls.

He sighs. "Get the fuel, get the girls, get out," he mutters under his breath so he doesn't disturb anyone – even though he's pretty sure he could shoot a rocket launcher right now and no one would wake up if they weren't touched.

"You don't need the girls," Jack says.

Rhys ignores him, stepping over a bandit's leg. Some of them are snoring, others are silent. Rhys keeps moving through the bandit camp, in search of the fuel and the girls.

He rounds a corner, seeing technical vehicles in the distance, and figures the fuel is probably near the vehicles. He's unprepared for the hand that suddenly grabs his ankle, and he barely manages to bite down on his tongue to keep from shouting in surprise as he nearly face plants, catching himself on his hands. BB makes an irritated, angry noise, flying toward the attacker but not shooting. Rhys looks at his ankle, already reaching for his stun-baton, when he realizes the fingers ensnaring his ankle are, in fact, metallic. Robotic.

He follows it to the arm and then the upper half of the body.

"Loader Bot?" he breathes, as those fingers loosen, allowing him to roll over so he's sitting on the ground, staring at half the robot.

"Hi," the bot says.

"Wha…? What happened to you?" Rhys asks, because he's pretty sure the last time he saw Loader Bot, he was a complete robot, with arms and legs and a torso and everything. Now he only has the torso and his arms. Where the hell are his legs?

"It is a long story," Loader Bot tells him. "We must find the girls."

Rhys nods. "Did they get…? Are they okay, do you know where they are?"

"They were captured. They are not far."

"Alright, good, that's good." Rhys's teeth catch his lower lip between them. "And the fuel?"

"It is by the vehicles," Loader Bot says. "It, also, is not far."

Rhys runs his flesh hand over his face. "Alright, yeah. Okay. Lead the way to the girls, and we gotta be quiet."

Loader Bot starts leading the way before Rhys can backtrack and remember that he doesn't have legs anymore. That doesn't seem to matter to the bot. Loader Bot now uses his long arms as legs, pushing metallic palms against the ground and moving quickly. Rhys almost has to jog to keep up, looking around to make sure the bandits are still sleeping.

It only takes a few short minutes for Loader Bot to stop outside of some hut-looking place. It looks uninhabited and run-down. Rhys grimaces at the sight. "The girls are in there?"

"Rhys?" a woman's voice hisses, sounding a lot like Fiona.

He smirks and goes around the corner. There's a vent there, but not nearly big enough to crawl through, even for Vaughn and his small size. Rhys sighs, pinching at the bridge of his nose with his flesh hand.

"Fiona?" he asks, just to be sure.

"Rhys!"

"A little help would be nice," Sasha says, so at least she's okay, too.

"Working on it," he says. "And please be quiet – they're sleeping pretty deeply but you never know what will wake them."

"There's two guards at the door on the other side," Fiona tells him. "That's the only way out we can see."

The things I do for you people.

He sighs. "LB, keep an eye on things; let me know if anyone else is coming. BB, go around the other side but be careful. Try not to shoot me."

The little bot gives him a smiley face, and goes around the other side of the building, disappearing from view.

"Uh – Rhys? Who are you talking to?" Sasha asks.

He ignores her, and carefully edges along the building, keeping to the shadows.

"Not a big fan of this idea, Rhysie," Jack informs him with a click of his tongue. "They have guns. Not sure what your little stun-baton is gonna do."

It goes apeshit around me, he thinks but doesn't say, instead gritting his teeth as he keeps moving, around the building.

There are two guards in front of the door, but they aren't exactly guarding it. Instead they're in an arm-wrestling match which doesn't seem to be going anywhere. They've reached a stalemate. Rhys sighs quietly. Bandits. Always so quirky.

His fingers clasp around the handle of his stun-baton, but already BB is coming around the corner. Red lights flash in Rhys' ECHO-eye, alerting him of nearby enemies BB is locking onto. All systems go, he thinks, and watches as BB fires. It catches both the bandits off-guard, but it's a little too loud. Shit. He's not sure what would have been worse; the sound of BB firing, or his stun-baton going crazy again and flinging everyone away with an electrical display. Too late to worry about it now.

He quickly moves toward the door and finds the lock on it. He smacks it hard with his metal hand, and it gives way beneath the pressure. He pries the door open and Sasha and Fiona come out of the room. Fiona smiles at him, and Sasha looks over his shoulder to frown.

"Uh, is that the dumpy bot?"

"His name is BB," Rhys says. "Be nice to him."

BB flies toward them, making little whirring screeching sounds, an angry emoticon on his face. Sasha rears back like it might shoot her, but BB isn't target-locking on her like he did with Vaughn earlier. He must know they're not the enemy right now.

Good. We can work on his social skills later.

"We need to get out of here," Rhys says. "Sleeping or not, they're bound to have heard BB firing."

"Let's go," Fiona says. "The gas cans are this way."

A part of Rhys wants to argue and say they really don't need to be worrying about the gas cans right now; they just need to get out of here. But he keeps his mouth shut because they do need the gas if they want to get away from here. There's no getting around that. So they round the corner, following Fiona, and Loader Bot follows them with only half of his body, using his arms as legs.

Rhys still wants to know what happened to him, but now isn't the time to ask.

Jack is being extra quiet; Rhys looks around and finds him trailing behind him, arms folded across his chest.

"I still don't like this plan," he says, aware Rhys is looking at him.

Rhys shakes his head; Jack's never happy, is he?

But then he remembers in the caravan earlier… when Jack seemed almost possessive of him… and proud…

He swallows and keeps following Fiona.

The gas cans are stacked on top of each other – five of them. He's sure there's more elsewhere, but they must have brought these out of storage for quicker use. Somewhat smart of them, but they lose points due to the fact absolutely no one is watching them right now. They're just sitting there, ripe for the taking. Everyone must be off celebrating, thinking they've already caught the would-be thieves. No need to keep watching the cans, then.

Idiots, Rhys can't help but think.

Fiona and Sasha each grab two cans, leaving Rhys with one. He's not quite sure how to feel about this; not only is he male, deemed the 'stronger' race, but he has a robotic arm which makes lifting things much easier. He should be the one to hold two cans. He doesn't argue, though, because they don't have time for that and at the moment, he's the only one with a weapon.

They slowly begin making their way out of the camp, careful to not make too much noise. The gas within the cans jiggles, making an audible sloshing sound which leaves Rhys looking around worriedly for any sign of movement.

It's because he's being vigilant that he spots it. Movement in the shadows.

A psycho bandit rushes – tall and laughing, moving quickly even with its over sized torso. There's a buzz axe in its right hand and it's already swinging. Rhys curses and pulls out his stun baton.

"Get to the caravan!" he orders as he faces the psycho.

Carrying two containers each and without weapons, the girls don't really have a choice but to comply. Rhys tosses his own can aside, stepping back away from the approaching badass psycho.

"It's time for another pound of flesh!" the psycho shouts, charging at him.

"I told you this was a bad idea, Rhysie," Jack all but hisses. "If we die here, I'll kill you myself!"

Rhys hits the button on the side of the baton. The rod emerges with a jolt of blue electric energy. The shockwave forces the psycho back several steps, even managing to stun it as little tendrils of electricity cling to its skin, continuously shocking it. Enraged, the psycho charges forward.

Around him, Rhys is all too aware of other bandits awakening at the commotion. They reach for their guns, shouting at him that he's dead meat and he shouldn't have come here.

They have guns, and all he has is a baton. Maybe Jack was right; this was a bad idea after all.

But it was the only idea. The only move he had, at the time, and he can't bring himself to regret his choice. That doesn't mean he's okay with dying here, though. He's come way too far to let it end here of all places.

He twirls the baton in his grasp, rounding on the more immediate threat. The psycho is charging at him, sure, but the guns are the primary threat here. They can hit him quickly from a distance. He looks at the gathered group of bandits around him, all aiming their weapons. He holds the baton outstretched in his hand, jabbing it forward slightly so it's jutting outward toward the growing mass of people, and there's that shockwave again. Powerful, directional – all without harming him. It's so strange, but it's useful, so he can't bring himself to hate it.

In fact… he kind of likes it.

Kind of.

A little.

It's nice, not feeling weak for once.

The bandits get thrown off their feet, flying back several feet. A few scream as they are electrocuted – steam rises from their bodies as they crash to the ground in a twitching heap, the scent of burnt flesh strong in the air. Rhys takes only a moment to stare at what he's done – and then he's back in the action, unable to worry about it right now.

It is, after all, easier to walk over corpses than it used to be.

Maybe that's not a bad thing. This is Pandora, after all.

Jack whistles loudly. "That's what I'm talking about, Rhysie! You and me, kid! We're going places!"

Hearing praise from Jack is still so incredibly weird.

Unnerving, even.

Loader Bot is swatting at several bandits' legs as he maneuvers across the ground on his hands, since he's just a torso at this point. BB hovers just above Rhys's shoulder, shooting little electrical shots at the psycho behind him. Right. The psycho.

Rhys spins and just barely manages to duck beneath the incoming swipe of the psycho's buzz axe. It's a whirring, cutting drill of death next to his ear – loud and overpowering. Rhys jumps back a few steps, swinging his baton so it's outstretched toward the psycho. When the psycho charges again, the baton taps right against his chest cavity – and send a jolting, bright electric shock through him. The psycho screams, a loud, hysterical sound, and then he falls silent as his body falls over, twitching. The scent of burnt flesh fills Rhys's nostrils again.

He looks around at the carnage around him. Bodies everywhere, some dead, some simply knocked out – and it's all his doing. His and his bots'.

They make a good team, actually.

He smiles to himself.

"Remind me never to underestimate that little baton of yours again, cupcake," Jack says, laughing, and Rhys's gaze flits toward the blue hologram. Jack is grinning at him. "That was awesome! With a little training and finesse – you might make a decent fighter yet, Rhysie!"

He sounds almost proud. It's a tone Rhys shouldn't like so much, especially coming from Jack of all people, but it leaves him grinning nevertheless.

He did it. He did this. He survived.

He had help – but he did it.

The adrenaline is still coursing through his body, leaving his mind dizzy with anticipation. Light-headed and frantic. He looks around, knowing this can't be all the bandits.

He hears shouts in the distance, but rather than wait for them, he pockets his now-dormant baton and picks up his forgotten gas can which has somehow survived the assault. He quickly begins making his way after the others.

When he crests the hill, he nearly runs headfirst into Fiona and Vaughn. They both stop and stare at him, shocked.

"You're okay," Fiona says, almost incredulously.

Rhys blinks at the two of them and smiles. "Uh, yeah – I'm fine. We should probably get this back to the caravan." He jiggles the gas can he's holding as BB makes a semi-angry beeping noise as it hovers over his shoulder still, and Loader Bot pounds his hands into the ground to keep up with him.

"Of course you're fine," Fiona says, rolling her eyes. "You had two robots with you."

Rhys smiles and keeps quiet about his stun baton. He's not sure why. Jack told him not to mention the tattoos glowing, which, yeah, he's definitely not looking forward to revealing that odd bit of information to anyone, so that's fine. But Jack said nothing about the stun baton. That's all Rhys. He's just not quite sure how to explain it – and admitting it to others might make it real. Might cement the fact that it does act differently for him, and that's what worries him. It's easier to dismiss this oddity when it's just his own mind he has to fool, and not everyone else around him.

Rhys passes by the two of them and heads toward the caravan. Sasha is peeking out of the caravan's windows and exits the vehicle when she sees them approaching.

"I see you made it back alive," she says.

"Aw, don't sound so upset," Rhys says, smirking at her.

She rolls her eyes but grins back at him.

"Where do you want this?" he asks.

"We need gas for the car," Vaughn says.

"I'll fill up the caravan," Sasha says.

Rhys nods and takes his can toward the car he stole from Vasquez.

Vasquez.

A knot form in his stomach. He shot off Vasquez's arm. He doesn't know if the man got medical treatment in time or if he bled out in that Atlas facility. He's not sure which option is worse – that he murdered someone other than a bandit, or that he left someone crippled in a way similar to him. Both are horrifying in their own right.

He thinks it might be easier if Vasquez is dead. The two were certainly not friends, and Rhys is getting better at walking over corpses. He's getting better at leaving a body count in his wake. While that's certainly terrifying in its own right – it's getting easier. Something he can get used to, can accept as a necessity, because it's not like he took those lives in cold blood. They had it coming – they deserved it. They were trying to kill him.

He's justified, right?

He quietly fills up the car's tank and stows the gas can in the backseat. Sasha appears to be ready, too, because the lights on the vehicle turn on.

Then the door bursts open.

"Rhys!" Sasha yells. "Why is there an adorable robot threatening me?"

Gortys. Right. He forgot.

He walks toward the caravan and peeks his head inside. Gortys's eyes are downturned into what could pass as an angry frown. Huh. He didn't know that little bot was possible of such a thing. BB beeps over his shoulder, flying toward Gortys. Gortys's eyes turn upward when he steps inside.

"Hey," he says. "These are the other people I mentioned."

"Hiiiii!" Gortys says, suddenly cheerful as it – she? – turns to face Sasha. "It's so nice to meet you!"

Sasha stares at it, then laughs. "Right. Where did this thing come from?"

"Her name is Gortys," Rhys says.

"Are you naming all of them?" Fiona asks.

Rhys shrugs. "She came with a name. And anyway, she's the orb we got from the facility. She can help us find the vault but we have to locate her missing pieces. She's incomplete."

"Does she at least know where they are?" Fiona asks.

"That way!" Gortys says helpfully, running in the same direction she did before.

"That way," Rhys repeats, smirking.

Fiona sighs heavily. "Alright. Let's just get out of here for now – we can worry about the rest after a good night's sleep."

Rhys nods and backs out of the caravan. BB follows him. Movement above makes him look up to see Loader Bot settling in on top of the caravan. The bot raises one hand and waves at him. Rhys waves back and returns to the car.

Vaughn has apparently decided he's driving, which means Rhys is relegated to the passenger seat.

Which is perfectly fine. It's been a long day. Rhys is tired, despite his nap however long ago. It doesn't feel like so long ago now. He's repaired a bot, activated another, and staged a rescue and assault on a bandit camp. That's enough for one day.

He settles into the passenger seat, leans the seat all the way back, and closes his eyes.

"You're gonna let this loser drive?" Jack asks from the backseat.

This time, his presence doesn't make him flinch. It's almost… natural, having him around now, and that's somewhat worrisome. BB settles in the backseat as well – Rhys can hear its soft whirs and beeps.

"So," Vaughn says, and Rhys mentally groans because he just wants to sleep. "You saved the girls."

"I let them out of their cell," Rhys says. "I don't know if that really counts as saving."

"Okay, we're going to have to work on this modesty thing, Rhysie," Jack says. "You took on a badass psycho! With a silly stun baton! Own that shit."

"Are you… okay?" Vaughn asks, almost hesitantly.

Rhys blinks his eyes open and glances at him. His grip on the steering wheel is tight and white-knuckled; even that's visible in the darkness, which is saying something. "Are you?" he asks.

Vaughn sighs heavily. "I felt useless. I couldn't do anything."

"You stayed with the getaway vehicles," Rhys says. "That's something."

"But I didn't want to leave you behind!"

Which is different, right? He betrayed Rhys earlier, was going to leave him behind then, but now he's against it. Maybe that means his words are true and he didn't want to betray Rhys – he's not sure. He's still too hurt to really think about it too much, and right now, he's too tired to air out that dirty laundry.

"Well, you didn't have to," he says, closing his eyes again. "I'm gonna sleep now. Wake me when we get to where we're going, or if you need me to drive."

He rolls his head away from Vaughn, ending the conversation, and settles in for some sleep.

xXx

Jack's bored. And annoyed. And excited.

It's a strange mixture of emotions, to be sure. It makes him shift in the backseat of the car, like some antsy guy uncomfortable in his own skin. Which, he's not. He's perfectly comfortable in his own skin, even if he is a hologram right now. He glares at the back of Rhys's head. The code monkey has let down his guard and entrusted the buff nerd with his safety, which Jack is not a fan of, and thus instead of slipping back inside of Rhys's head, he keeps tossing glares at the nerd in the driver's seat, because someone has to keep watch and if Rhys won't do it, that means Jack has to.

One wrong move from him and Jack will… something. He's not sure what. He's not exactly physical, and he knows he can't do anything to the nerd. He can give Rhys a headache, though, which should wake him up. Then he can defend himself.

So far, the nerd hasn't tried anything. Yet. Jack doesn't trust him for a minute, though. He's already betrayed them once. He's not sure when they became a them, but they are now, because his fate is tied to Rhys's for the time being. He's not a fan of this situation, but it does have its perks, he supposes.

He never thought he'd be trapped in the head of siren, after all. Let alone a male one. All sirens are supposed to be female, and there are only six of them at any given time. He knows this. His daughter is a siren. A powerful one, too. Lilith is also a siren, as is Maya. He knows of three of the six sirens, and to his knowledge, there's no such thing as a male siren. They're all female. Always.

And yet…

Rhys has the same tattoos. The same glowing tattoos, which glow in the same exact way as Lilith's, Maya's, and Angel's. He might not be as powerful as them – yet – but he's also only now apparently coming into his powers. Angel's powers appeared at a very young age, leaving him struggling to both hide her and control her so she didn't lose control herself. She did so once, after all – it cost them her mother's life. When her powers appeared, it was mostly emotional at first – she threw kid tantrums like most kids do, and when angered or upset, her powers revealed themselves.

Rhy's powers didn't emerge after the nerd's betrayal. They didn't emerge in all the times he could have died here on Pandora. Instead, his tattoos started glowing when his finger slipped in the wiring. Add to it the fact that his electric stun-baton seems to work far better for him than Jack has ever seen one work for anyone else, and it doesn't take a lot to come to the conclusion that Rhys isn't the most powerful siren. Sirens control the elements – all of them. He seems to only be able to alter and absorb electrical surges. One element.

That's not to say he couldn't do more, though. With a little… refining, he could be a powerful weapon. A special one, as the only male siren. An anomaly.

And Jack's the first one to see it.

It's gotten… easier, being tied to this code monkey, but this just makes it almost worth it. Sure, he's down on his luck right now, but what a rare find! And it's all his. Rhys is his.

Now all he needs to do is find a way to get rid of the rest of these losers and the two of them can make history.

Maybe he can keep him and Angel together, hidden away safely. Angel would like a friend.

Thinking of her just makes this whole situation worse, though. He misses her. He wants to find her, to know she's being taken care of – to know what happened to her after his death.

Death.

There has to be a mistake. He didn't die. Heroes don't die.

The good guys always win. He can't be dead.

Thinking of his supposed mortality is… depressing, though. It makes this place in his holographic chest hurt, and he hates that feeling. He can't be dead. This is just a misunderstanding.

He must have faked his death. Yeah, that's it. He faked his death and is biding his time somewhere, ready to rise from the ashes.

And then he gets out of this holographic form, there will be two of him.

He'll be more than ready to kill those traitorous bandits then.

People like Lilith. Moxxi. Roland.

They'll all pay.

Now there are new names added to the list, though.

Fiona. Sasha. Vaughn.

They'll all pay.

No one betrays Handsome Jack and lives.

Maybe they don't know about his existence – except Vaughn – but they betrayed and abandoned Rhys, which is just as bad because Jack's stuck in his head at the moment. A betrayal against Rhys is a betrayal against him.

And they'll all pay.

His revenge will go smoother if Rhys trusts him, though.

He thinks he's done a good job of proving he's a much better asset to have on the code monkey's side than the others – even in his holographic form. He's helped Rhys hack things several times and even kept an eye on things while the code monkey slept, which is rather generous of him, isn't it?

If Rhys knows he can trust Jack, he'll see how unworthy everyone else is. He'll feel the betrayal more keenly, like he should, and will want revenge just like Jack.

And then everything will fall into place.


	7. The Art of Ignoring

Vaughn glances over at the sleeping Rhys. He looks mostly peaceful, save for a slight crease to his brow, but that might be because he's sleeping in a car and hasn't been able to really relax yet. None of them have. It's been a long few days. It feels like weeks, months, since they first left Helios to steal Vasquez's deal, but he knows it's only really been a few Pandoran days.

Still a long time – long enough for him to reexamine his life.

At Hyperion, he knew what he was doing. He knew what each day entailed – everything was neatly planned. He had a job, an apartment, and great friends in Rhys and Yvette. Things fell apart after Jack was killed, but things somehow got better, too. Jack was a wild card, a loose cannon, and everyone could see. Most people feared him because he was known to shoot the messenger, so delivering bad news to him was a death sentence. A literal one. Other than that, though, profits were through the roof and everyone was keen on working long hours to impress the boss and not bring his wrath down upon them. In a company standpoint, business was booming, and that was thanks to their CEO.

A dangerous CEO, but at least he got the company working. A lot of people liked that.

Rhys never seemed to realize the threat Jack posed. Vaughn often kept his mouth shut about it because, really, how likely was it that Rhys would ever meet his hero? Especially after Jack's demise. So, it was safe to let the adoration linger because nothing could come of it. Now, though, things have certainly changed.

Jack is in Rhys's head. He's not entirely sure how that works, but Rhys did pass out after uploading the data into his head, which isn't what was supposed to happen. He's seen Rhys upload data into his mind several times, and it's always been a smooth, easy process. But this time was different, and he knew that, but he let Rhys shrug it off with an 'I'm fine' like always.

And now Jack's in his head, influencing him.

He won't lie and say that he didn't mess up – that he didn't break Rhys's trust in him himself. But he can't help but wonder if it's Jack's influence that's keeping Rhys from forgiving him. They've always been able to talk things through just fine, but Rhys won't even talk to him about it now. He just shrugs off the conversation. Not that there's been a lot of time to sit down and talk things out, but still – he feels like Rhys is avoiding him, even if they're in the same car together now.

Which he deserves, he knows. He did break Rhys's trust.

But how is he supposed to win back that trust with Jack in his head?

Rhys can complain about Jack all he wants, but Vaughn knows there's a part of him that likes having his idol in his head. Rhys might not realize how deep that part goes just yet, but one day he will – and then he might start listening to Jack over Vaughn. Jack's already fairly deep into his systems – he can control Rhys's cybernetic hand occasionally, using it to hit Rhys in the face when he wants. And that's too far.

He's worried, but he can't bring up those worries to Rhys just yet. Not when his friend is still so angry with him. Even if Rhys seems to have calmed down, it doesn't mean things are back to how they used to be.

He's beginning to wonder if things will ever be okay again. If they'll ever be how they were before.

They're blacklisted now. Hunted by their former coworkers. Yvette's up there all alone, and they haven't heard from her in a long time. He wonders how she's doing – if she's okay, if they got to her, if she's locked away somewhere alone and scared, or worse… if she's hurt, or already dead.

He can't think about that, though. It feels like defeat.

And he wasn't lying when he said Pandora somehow makes him feel alive. When his pulse is racing with adrenaline all the time, it's hard to think about defeat. Defeat means death, and he's not ready to die.

He doesn't realize his grip is too tight on the steering wheel until he starts losing feeling in his fingertips. He loosens his hold and exhales slowly, allowing the tension to ease from his body.

Things will work out in the end.

Rhys will think of something.

Like Jack, they have that one specific thing in common.

Neither knows when to give up, and they always have a plan.

Hopefully that's where their similarities end.

xXx

Rhys wakes hours later. They're still driving, showing no signs of stopping. The caravan's taillights are just ahead, leading the way through the vast darkness. He looks over at Vaughn, who is utterly focused on the road ahead even though he's basically just staring at the caravan's lights.

Rhys stretches, causing Vaughn to startle and glance over.

"Oh, you're awake," he says. "I mean – uh – sleep well?"

"Pull over," Rhys says.

"Uh – what? Why?"

"I need to take a leak, and you look exhausted."

It's a testament to how tired he must be that Vaughn just stares at him in response. Rhys smirks back at him. He can read Vaughn too well. He holds his gaze until Vaughn sighs and slows the car, pulling to a stop.

Rhys gets out and does his business before he trades places with Vaughn. He looks almost small in the seat which is pushed back as far as it can go, laying all the back as well to accommodate Rhys's long, lanky body.

"Thanks," Vaughn says, curling up in the seat.

Rhys bites his tongue to keep from replying. It's almost too easy to fall into this normal rhythm, to forget that Vaughn betrayed him. Forgetting means forgiving, and he's just not ready to do that yet. Maybe when this whole thing is over, and they've found the vault, and he can sit down and finally think about it and accept it. Right now, though, he's in no place or shape to do that.

Vaughn slowly falls to sleep.

"Finally," Jack says from the backseat, nearly causing Rhys to jerk the wheel in shock, but he manages to refrain from doing that at the last minute. "I thought the dweeb would never sleep. Okay, so what's the plan, cupcake?"

"Follow the girls," Rhys says quietly, careful not to wake Vaughn.

"Well, yeah, for now – until we get to the vault," Jack says. Rhys can picture him rolling his eyes. "But what then? How are we going to get revenge on these traitors?"

Rhys slumps in his seat. Jack really wants revenge, though Rhys isn't sure why. Not really. They betrayed him, after all, not Jack. Everything he knows about Jack points to Jack only looking out for himself. Since he's stuck with Rhys right now, is a betrayal against Rhys the same as one against him? It must be. It's the only reason he can think of that Jack would be this gung-ho about helping him.

"I don't know," he says. He doesn't want revenge, not really. He just wants to be able to look back one day, and forgive it all. Is that wrong? Or should he be hung up on revenge like Jack? What constitutes revenge? A prank? Or something more substantial and dangerous? Considering it's Jack saying this, it's probably something violent, and he doesn't want that. "I can't think about it right now. Get back to me after this is all over."

Jack sighs. It's this long, worn out sigh like Rhys is trying his patience. Instantly, Rhys's body tenses because he doesn't especially like that sound. It's the same sigh his parents used to give whenever he couldn't accomplish simple tasks because he was a cripple – it was the sigh of someone done with helping someone else, tired of trying when the person in question could never reach those expectations. "You're killing me here, pumpkin. These assholes betrayed you. Two of them left you in the desert to die, and the dweeb tried to hand you over on a silver platter! Tell me you're not just going to let that slide."

"I…"

He doesn't know what to say. He swallows and tightens his grip on the steering wheel.

"Loyalty is nice to a point, cupcake. Now it's just sad. They don't deserve your loyalty! They haven't had your back this whole time."

"But you do?" Rhys asks, looking at him in the rearview mirror.

Jack smiles, all predatory passion and no real mirth. "Of course I do, Rhysiecakes! You and me, babe. We're going to own this planet. And everyone who ever hurt us is going to pay."

Rhys exhales slowly. What do you care who hurt me? But he doesn't say anything.

He just refocuses his gaze on the taillights ahead, attempting to catch up to the girls.

Jack sighs again. That same heavy sound. "You're too good for your own, well, good, Rhysie. You need to set aside this friendship idea and focus on the fact these assholes all left you to die. If I hadn't been there when Vasq-fuck found you in the desert, what would have happened?"

This is a rhetorical question, Rhys knows. He knows exactly what would have happened if Jack hadn't been there to enhance his ECHO-eye. He would have died, Vaughn would have died, and that would have been the end of the story.

Except…

He looks back at Jack in the rearview. "Why'd you help me, anyway? Letting me die would have gotten you back to Hyperion faster."

Jack rolls his eyes, looking miffed. "Seriously? If you die, I die, genius."

"Do you, though? They seem to know about you somehow. Surely they'd know how to extract you even if I was dead."

"And give fuckface the glory? Hell no, kiddo! You and me, babe! We're in this together." That wolfish grin is back. "And when we both get back to Hyperion, we're going to own it. You and me! We've got each other's backs."

Rhys sighs. He wishes it were that simple.

Jack makes it sound like he's doing this for Rhys – but Rhys knows better.

He's always idolized the man, maybe even crushed on him for a bit, but if there's one thing he knows for certain, it's that Jack looks after himself first and foremost. Screw everyone else.

So where does that leave Rhys when this is all over?

Jack might be talking a big game now – playing up the fact that they're both going to come out on top. But Jack doesn't share the spotlight with anyone. At the end of this, he's going to be extracted from Rhys's head and Rhys is going to be tossed aside – either alive or dead, but either way, down the drain. There's a big road of nothing ahead for him, waiting at Hyperion.

After they find this vault, his life is going to be over.

Somehow, he can't help but wonder if that's such a bad thing.

Jack is right, after all. They've all betrayed him. At one point or another, they all chose themselves over Rhys.

Rhys can't do the same. He can't choose himself over Jack, can he? He can't just not deliver Jack to Hyperion and let him regain a body of his own. He might have died before, but he's alive now, in whatever way he can be as a hologram – but he has his own thoughts and feelings and memories. That's a soul right there, isn't it? That's a being. It's not something Rhys can just squash, can he?

And Hyperion really has fallen apart with Jack as its CEO. Jack has is faults – and many of them – but he is the one who put an end to Tassiter and all the unnecessary pain he inflicted on people like Rhys. So, doesn't that mean he owes Jack, at least a little?

It's a jumbled, confused mess in his mind. He can't think straight.

He doesn't know what he'll do when this is over. He doesn't know what will happen.

All he can do is worry about the present and push all that aside for another, distant day.

"Hellloooo? Rhysiecakes? This is your better half speaking, I expect you to listen to me."

Rhys blinks, tuning Jack back in. He'd tuned him out because it seemed like he was going to go on a rant about vengeance again, much as he had on the way to Old Haven. "Huh?" he asks.

Jack huffs. "Finally! I don't like being ignored."

"Why not?"

Jack glares at him. It's this cold, narrow-eyed look Rhys doesn't particularly like. "Just don't ignore me, pumpkin," Jack says almost icily, before he grins again. "Anyway, as I was saying, for revenge we should-"

Rhys slams on the breaks, having not realized the caravan in front of him stopped until then. He stops just short of the caravan, flinging himself and Vaughn forward. Cursing, he flings his metallic arm outward and holds Vaughn back against the seat even as his friend's eyes open and he flails about, startled. Since he's keeping Vaughn in place, he doesn't have the strength or positioning with his flesh hand to keep himself from flinging harshly against the steering wheel. Maybe a seatbelt would have helped, but they've been out here all alone so far – he didn't think it was necessary, and was a little too distracted to worry about it.

"What the hell, Rhys?!" Vaughn gasps, looking around as Rhys groans and removes his arm from keeping Vaughn pinned against the seat.

"Ow," he says, rubbing his chest from where it hit the steering wheel.

"Are you okay?" Vaughn asks.

"Gotta wear your seatbelt, Rhysie," Jack says, clicking his tongue on the roof of his non-existent mouth. "Amateur hour. I live in your head so you have to keep it safe, huh?"

"I'm fine," Rhys says, before looking out the window.

The girls are outside the caravan, waiting.

"I'll just… go see what they want," he says, opening the driver's door. He climbs out of the vehicle and approaches the girls. They both look tired in the moonlight – hell, he's tired too. They all are. It's been a long day. "So, what's up?" he asks, catching a flicker of blue next to him to tell him Jack as decided to join him.

"This oughtta be good," Jack says.

"We're tired," Fiona says around a yawn. "We should be safe enough here if we take turns keeping watch. We can set up a small camp and actually get some sleep."

Rhys nods. "Alright, I'm game. I can take first watch." He just woke up from a nap, after all.

Fiona looks relieved. "Oh, good. I was hoping you'd say that." She grins. "Maybe you're not so bad after all, for a Hyperion."

"Well," Rhys says, smirking, "you're not so bad yourself. For a Pandoran."

She laughs.

"Ugh, kill me now," Jack groans. "Don't tell me you're actually flirting with her. Come on, Rhysie! Where are your standards?"

Rhys ignores him. He's not flirting with Fiona, but it feels nice to joke around. To forget all the bad blood between them – and there's a lot of it. Nothing is forgiven, but at least he can pretend things are okay for the time being.

"I'll set up camp," Sasha says. "Wanna help me?"

"Sure," he says.

"Ugh, and her too, now?" Jack asks.

Rhys spares him a glance and a quirked brow, but follows after Sasha before either of them can ask what he's doing. Jack stomps after him.

"You don't actually like them, do you?" Jack asks, suddenly serious.

Rhys ignores him.

"Rhysie! Are you ignoring me again? I told you how much I hate that!"

"So what do you need help with?" Rhys asks as Sasha opens a side compartment outside the caravan. It seems to be filled with luggage and supplies.

"You're taller than me and have that robotic arm," she says as she grabs a few items from the compartment. "You can make the tents higher and life heavier things than I can." She sends him a sharp look. "Not that I need the help. It would just be… uh… helpful."

He smirks. "Tell me what to do and I'll do it."

"Helllooo? Handsome Jack here! You know – that part of you that doesn't like being ignored? Ringing any bells? C'mon, cupcake, don't ignore me!"

Rhys doesn't even glance his way as he walks past the blue outline and heads for the spot Sasha has designated as 'camp material'.

"Ugh," Jack huffs. "Fine. Whatever. I guess I'll just give you a headache, then."

He throws Jack a quick, nasty look while Sasha is looking away, focused elsewhere as she describes how she thinks the camp should be set up.

"Gimme a few minutes," Rhys huffs.

"What was that?" Sasha asks, looking back at him.

"What? Uh – nothing! Nothing. I was just… talking out loud. To myself. Give me a few minutes to stretch and I'll be ready to help you," he says. "I was, uh – napping in the car, before we switched drivers so I'm just a little stiff. Sorry."

She eyes him for a moment, and then nods. "Alright. I'll go get the rest of the stuff while you stretch, then."

She walks away, and Rhys rounds on Jack.

"Are you serious?" he asks, glaring. "Why are you being such an ass right now?"

"You're ignoring me!" Jack says, clearly offended. "I told you I hate that!"

"I kind of have to in front of everyone else, and you know that," Rhy says, rolling his eyes. "Unless you want me to tell them everything?"

Jack sighs, deflating. "Fine. But I don't like being ignored."

Wait, that worked?

This is certainly not what he was expecting. He was expecting Jack to go into full rant-mode, but apparently that's not the case.

He frowns. "Are you okay?"

Jack laughs – loud and stubborn. "Of course I'm okay, cupcake! I'm great! Thanks for asking!"

He rolls his eyes. "Fine. Don't tell me."

He turns away from Jack to look at the supplies in front of him. He's gone a few short-lived camping trips with Vaughn and Yvette, so he knows the basics of setting up camp, but none of these are standard-issue camping gear. He'll need Sasha's advice as to how to set this up.

Jack's quiet for a moment. Rhys glances over at him to see him standing with his arms folded across his chest, silently fuming as he glares at Rhys all the while.

A dull headache forms.

"Seriously?" he snaps, glaring back at the blue outline. "Why do you hate me so much? What have I ever done to you?"

"I don't hate you," Jack snaps, sounding utterly angry and like he does hate him, despite his words.

Rhys snorts. "Because you're just so trustworthy right now."

"I don't like being ignored!"

"I'm not ignoring you! Here I am – this is me, talking to you!"

They glare at each other until Sasha comes back.

"Uh – are you okay?" she asks, stopping to frown at him.

He must look ridiculous, glaring at nothing in particular. He relaxes, smiling at her. "I'm great!" he says, false cheerfully. "Did my stretches and I'm ready!"

There's a flicker of blue from off to the side. He winces as Jack re-inserts himself in his head, disappearing from view.

Good. He's tired of this stupid argument with Jack. He's tired of Jack acting like a needy kid.

He knows Rhys can't speak to him openly in front of others. Vaughn, maybe, because he knows about Jack's existence, but not the girls. They hate Hyperion, and they hate Jack. They barely tolerate Rhys but that could change the minute they find out about Jack being in his head. No, he can't tell them.

He's silent the whole time he and Sasha are setting up camp.

xXx

Jack awakens himself sometime later. Rhys is keeping watching, quietly poking at a fire to keep it burning, moving the wood around before it can burn away completely. The others are asleep around him, buried in covers for the cold Pandoran night. He himself can't feel the air, which is both a blessing and a curse.

Perks of being in this whatever-it-is state of being. A downside as well, though, because he can't really be alive if he can't even feel the air around him. It's something he used to take for granted, but now that he's less than, he feels the loss acutely.

Just like he feels the loss of certain other things.

He looks back at Rhys, who has yet to notice his presence. Or, if he has, he doesn't acknowledge him.

He hates relying on Rhys for the only bit of conversation. Rhys is the only one who can hear and see him, though.

He knows Rhys needs to ignore him occasionally to save face with the others. He knows that.

That doesn't mean he likes it, though.

Deep down, he might even admit it hurts, being ignored like that. Like he's not actually here, like he's a ghost, like he's less than. He absolutely fucking hates it, and he hates that this is his life for the foreseeable future. At least until they open the vault and get back to Hyperion to find a way to get him out of Rhys's head.

And then… ohhh, and then.

That's when the real fun will begin. With Rhys at his side, he'll bring this shitty planet to its knees. He'll find his daughter, get revenge for his supposed death, and have a hot siren at his side.

Wait.

What?

He glares at the back of Rhys's head, like he's somehow responsible for this.

He didn't just think that. No.

Rhys is… fine, sure, but he's not hot. Not like that. No. He's tall and lanky and he has giraffe legs. He's clumsy and moral and everything Jack usually hates.

Usually.

For some reason, it seems to work on Rhys. Which is just stupid.

And makes him glare more.

"I can feel that," Rhys says, stoking the fire. "Could you quit glaring at me, please? What did I do now?"

"Oh, so you're not ignoring me now?" Jack asks, still glaring.

"Is that what this is about?" Rhys finally looks away from the fire, blue and brown eyes focusing on him. The look is grounding in a way little else is.

When Rhys looks at him, it's like he's actually here, real and solid and not a hologram. It's stupid, and he hates being reliant on some stupid moral code monkey to feel like he's actually still human. But with the others, they all look past him like he's not really there – because in their eyes, he isn't. He doesn't exist for them. He might as well be a ghost.

But when Rhys looks at him, talks to him, all of that seems to fade away for a moment. He doesn't need to breathe in this state of being, but at least when he's being looked at and spoken to, he feels like he actually can breathe. The rest of the time it feels like he's slowly suffocating, and he hates it.

This is not how the story was supposed to end. This is not what's supposed to happen to heroes. This can't be right.

He exhales slowly, shoving all that nonsense into the back of his mind. He's not dead, after all, so why worry about it? "I don't like being ignored, Rhysie."

Rhys rolls his eyes. "So I've noticed. But I can't just talk to you like normal all the time, you know."

"We could go off on our own. We don't need these assholes."

"You know we can't do that."

Jack sighs. Deep down, he does know that. If they're going to open the vault, they're going to need help. He knows that much at least, so sticking together in a group for the vault fight is a wise idea. He's just not sure why it has to be these assholes.

"But why them, though?" he asks, voicing his thoughts. "They've betrayed you. Dump them and we can find others."

Rhys's eyes narrow. "I'm not leaving."

"They're going to be your downfall, cupcake."

And mine, he thinks with a heavy sigh.

The buff nerd rolls over in his sleep, muttering under his breath. Rhys looks away from Jack and that strange, hollow feeling returns. He really fucking hates it when Rhys isn't looking at him, or talking to him, or paying attention to him, or-

Fuck. He sounds needy.

It's just temporary, he tells himself. This is all just temporary. Things will be fixed soon, and he'll own the world.

And it will be the true ending to the story. His story.

And he'll have Rhys and Angel at his side.

Nothing will stop them then.

He just has to make it through this existence first, which is certainly easier said than done, but Jack is nothing if not determined.

If only Rhys would stop ignoring him.

"Is it so much to ask for a simple conversation, pumpkin?" he asks, as sweetly as he can.

Rhys looks back at him, but says nothing.

Jack huffs. "You've got Handsome Jack all to yourself, Rhsiecakes! You should be thrilled. I mean, you had such a crush on me and everything, you'd think this was a dream come true!"

Rhys's expression darkens. Jack actually likes that stubborn look of anger. It suits him well. If only he'd use it more, against others. "Fuck off, Jack," Rhys says, before looking back into the fire.

Fury ignites somewhere within him. "Fuck off? Fuck off?" he hisses, stomping toward Rhys. Rhys looks back over, shocked at the fury in his tone, and good, he should be scared. "Fuck you, you little asshole!"

Rhys scrambles to his feet as Jack swipes at him. It won't do anything to him really, but the fact Rhys is backpedaling is really doing wonders for his ego. He grins.

"Not so quick to snap at me now, are you, kiddo?"

"What do you want, Jack?" Rhys hisses, quickly looking around at everyone to make sure they're still asleep before settling his full attention on Jack, glaring at him.

And really, fury just looks great on him. He should wear it more often.

"I am in your head, Rhysie," Jack says, grinning at him. "I want your fucking attention, cupcake, what do you think I want? I don't like being ignored. I told you this. And then just go and snap at me. A guy could get the feeling he's not loved here."

Rhys sighs, the anger deflating. "Is being ignored really such a trigger for you?"

Jack's eyes narrow. "Yes," he says seriously. "It is."

Rhys doesn't ask him to explain why. Doesn't ask for any explanation at all.

He just nods, like that settles things. "Alright," he says simply. "I'll try not to ignore you unless I have to when I'm with the others."

"Just like that?" Jack can't help but ask, because usually people worry about silly things like reasons.

Rhys shrugs. "If you really hate being ignored, I figure you have your own reasons. I can respect them. And I get how being in your position might be really frustrating right now, so – yeah. Just like that."

Jack stares at him for a moment. That's actually kind of… touching. It makes him want to puke, actually. Rhys is too fucking nice to survive in this world. How the hell has he managed to survive this long without Jack?

"Can I get back to the fire now?" Rhys asks, looking over his shoulder at the fire burning a few feet away.

Jack says nothing, still staring at him.

Rhys takes his silence as a yes and moves past him to retake his seat at the fire.

Jack walks after him. He doesn't really have a choice in the matter. The further apart they get, the more he just… feels awful. So, really, he has to be close to Rhys.

And maybe being close to him isn't such a bad thing. Maybe. All the time.

"So," Rhys says quietly, stoking the fire again. "What do you want to talk about?"

Jack stares at him again. He's so… accepting. It's odd. Really, really odd. "Let's talk about you, Rhysie," he says, because there's no way he's talking about himself. He might share a brain with Rhys at the moment, but that doesn't mean he's willing to talk about his own past and memories and everything. And, he is curious about Rhys. It's kind of hard not to be.

"I'm pretty boring," Rhys says.

Jack grins. "I find you quite interesting, pumpkin."

"What's with the pet names, anyway?"

"What? You saying you don't like them?"

Rhys scowls at him, tossing him a quick look.

"See, I think you like them just fine," Jack says, smirking. "And anyway, I asked about you. So, tell me about you."

Rhys puts new wood on the fire and pushes to his feet. He nods his head away from the others, toward the car, and Jack quietly follows after him.

"Sorry," Rhys says as he climbs into the car and Jack appears in the backseat. "I didn't want to risk waking them. I can keep an eye on things from here, and with the windows down I can hear everything too, but I don't have to risk waking them. I'll have go back soon and stoke the fire but we should be good for a little bit."

That's… thoughtful of him. Not just for Jack, whom Rhys is clearly tolerating, but also for the others who are trying to sleep. People like Rhys are why Jack kills things.

"So, get with the talking," Jack says.

"Uh, I don't know what you want me to say. I grew up on Eden-5. I lost my arm and eye in an explosion, and got it replaced by Hyperion. I was one of their original, uh, volunteers."

The way he says it makes Jack scowl. "Do I need to kill someone?"

"Huh?" Rhys frowns, shaking his head. "Nah, you killed Tassiter. I guess that fixes it."

Jack laughs. He can't help himself. "Yeah, that guy was a grade A douchebag."

"He really was."

"You met him, then?"

How is it Rhys worked for the company, knew Tassiter, and yet he and Jack never crossed paths?

"Briefly," Rhys says, scowling. "He liked to check in on his, uh, property."

"Property," Jack repeats flatly, a hot knot of anger forming somewhere in his non-existent stomach. "Explain that to me."

Rhys shrugs, like it's no big deal, but there's a certain tenseness to his shoulders that says otherwise. He's good at hiding it, though. Better than most people. "He gave me an arm and an eye," Rhys says. "They were both Hyperion property, and it was experimental technology and an experimental procedure. He said that meant he owned me."

"Oh, do I almost regret the fact he's already dead," Jack says, growling under his breath. "I should have made that asshole suffer more before he died. He didn't own you, Rhysie."

Rhys shrugs again. "It was years ago. It's fine."

"Well, no one owns you, pumpkin." Except me.

Rhys is his. And anyone who tries to lay a hand on him is going to feel the full and complete wrath of Handsome fucking Jack.

"But, uh, anyway," Rhys says, snapping him from his thoughts, "that's my story, I guess. Joined Hyperion and worked my way up. Met Vaughn and Yvette. Tried to steal Vasquez's deal, and the rest, I guess, you know."

"What made you want to steal Vasquez's deal?" Jack asks, curious. Rhys seemed like a nice guy – too moral, really – so why go through all the trouble to do something like this which would clearly get him into trouble?

Rhys sighs heavily. "It seemed like a good idea at the time, but I guess I was angry. I worked my ass off for that promotion, and then he just comes in out of nowhere and takes it and rubs it in my face. Then he decides to promote me, to the head fucking janitor."

"Oh, that asshole," Jack groans.

"Yeah. After that, I learned about his deal and I wanted to get back at him. So I stole his new car he was so proud of and took it on a moonshot down to Pandora with Vaughn. Things didn't exactly go as planned, of course."

"At least you tried," Jack says. "I'm actually kind of proud of you, kiddo. You took initiative."

Rhys goes quiet for a moment, biting his lower lip thoughtfully. "Thanks," he says finally. "I think. Even if that's what caused us all to be in this mess."

"Without you, I guess I'd be stuck in some data drive for who knows how long," Jack says distastefully. "At least now I can walk around and think and speak for myself. So, uh… thanks for putting a random data drive into your head. I guess."

Fuck, it's hard to say thanks. Feels like he's needy, then. Like he needs Rhys, and he doesn't. No. He's just tied to him for the time being, and maybe, on some level, he can acknowledge that being tied to him isn't the worst thing ever.

Rhys stares at him for a moment.

"I know I don't have anything on my face," Jack says, scoffing. "I don't have a face. Not really."

"Just, uh… I wasn't expecting you to thank me. Or anyone."

"I can be nice," he says defensively.

"I'm sure you can, I just, uh – wasn't expecting it. That's all."

Jack rolls his eyes.

"Anyway," Rhys says, "it's been kind of… nice, talking like this. We could, uh… do it again sometime, if you want."

"Sure, Rhysie," Jack says, smirking. "We'll call it a date."

Rhys groans. "Ugh, do you always have to do that?"

"Do what?" he asks mock innocently.

"You know what," Rhys huffs.

Jack just grins, and Rhys rolls his eyes and gets out of the car. Jack follows after him as he walks back toward the fire and the others.

He sits back in his spot and stokes the flames, before leaning over to prod Vaughn awake. Vaughn wakes with a soft start, looking around worriedly before his gaze lands on Rhys and he smiles.

"Your turn," Rhys says.

"Yeah, sure," Vaughn says, sitting up as he rubs the sleep from his eyes. "Get some sleep, bro."

Rhys curls up in the sleeping bag and covers Vaughn previously occupied, his eyes quickly falling shut.

Jack glares at Vaughn, not trusting him for a minute.

If Rhys won't – and can't – stay up and watch his own back the whole time they're out here, then as a hologram who doesn't need to sleep himself, that tasks falls to Jack. Someone has to make sure they don't get stabbed in their sleep, after all.

He'll stay awake and make sure nothing happens to him or Rhys while the code monkey sleeps.

And then, soon, it'll just be him and Rhys.

Him, Rhys, and Angel – making the world fall to its knees before them.


	8. Compromises

**{I'm sorry I am such a lazy sshole.}**

It's still dark when they abandon camp and get back on the move, but that's to be expected on Pandora. It's Rhys and Vaughn in the car again while the girls, along with Gortys, and LB, take the caravan. BB hovers in the backseat of the car, looking this way and that, little notifications popping up haphazardly across Rhys's field of vision due to his ECHO-eye and its attachment to the little bot.

The bot is curious. Asking what things are, wanting to learn about the world. It still can't speak, not really, but in Rhys's vision a smiling emoticon might appear next to an outlined object of interest, or a question mark. The little bot is so curious, and Rhys feels his heart melting with each little tidbit the bot wants to learn.

He spends the drive describing things to the bot while Vaughn drives in near-silence. It's still dark out, most of the things Rhys is mentioning not even visible to his normal human vision, but the little bot can see it, and so can Rhys with his ECHO-eye. He doesn't even realize Jack is also in the backseat, actually sitting quietly as he describes stuff to the bot, until he feels that cobweb-like feeling slide through his shoulder, causing him to flinch and twist around to see that Jack is lowering his hand, having tried once again to touch him.

"You really like bots, huh, kid?" Jack asks, staring at him.

"I already told you yes," Rhys says, twisting back around to look out the window.

"Huh?" Vaughn asks, because this is something different than he's been listening to for the past two hours.

"Oh, sorry – Jack's here," Rhys says, frowning somewhat. He's still not really comfortable discussing Jack's existence to anyone, but Vaughn already knows about it. Still, that doesn't mean he likes speaking to Jack so openly with any witnesses, even if they are Vaughn.

He feels this uneasiness is justified, though. Vaughn did try to betray him. He might be sorry about it, sure, but that doesn't change the fact that when push came to shove, Vaughn was more than willing to sell him out. And that still hurts, still burns deep inside, but he's gotten better at ignoring it lately.

"And, uh… what's Jack got to say?" Vaughn asks, uneasily.

Rhys glances over at him. Vaughn's grip is tight on the steering wheel, and quickly scanning him reveals that his heartrate is elevated and he's nervous. Why, though? Jack can't do anything to him. He's trapped in Rhys's mind. He's Rhys's problem, not Vaughn's.

"About robots," Rhys says, seeing no reason to lie.

"Oh," Vaughn says quietly.

Rhys frowns at him.

Before he can say anything, though, BB is targeting a new location with a brand new question mark. Rhys relaxes into his seat and smiles as he goes into his easy explanation about the skag in the distance.

"Are you going to describe everything to the dumpy bot?" Jack asks, almost incredulously.

Rhys scowls, even though he's not looking back at Jack. "He's curious and eager to learn. Of course I'm going to explain things to him."

"The bot?" Vaughn asks.

"Do you have a problem with me telling him about things?" Rhys asks.

"Uh, I don't," Vaughn says.

"Not you," Rhys sighs.

"Oh…"

"I don't have a problem with it, pumpkin," Jack says, almost warmly. "It's just odd to see someone so patient with a dumpy bot of all things."

"He has a new name now. It's BB."

"I can see that, cupcake. Just – most people wouldn't bother with it."

"Yeah, well, I'm not most people," Rhys huffs, folding his arms across his chest.

"I'm beginning to realize that," Jack says, a little too seriously.

Rhys twists to look back at him, but Jack isn't anywhere to be seen. There's the familiar twinge of pain as Jack hides away in the back of Rhys's mind. He wonders, briefly, what that must be like for him. "Huh," Rhys mutters as he slips back into his seat.

"What?" Vaughn asks.

"Nothing," Rhys replies, shrugging. "I'm not, uh… annoying you, am I?"

"What? No! Of course not. I think it's… it's great that you're teaching the bot things. It's great that you, uh, care so much…" Vaughn trails off, grip tightening on the steering wheel again.

"You're acting odd," Rhys says, but he's not sure he has any real right to say that. He himself has been acting odd since they landed on Pandora, he knows. It's not only because he has a hologram stuck in his head, but that's definitely part of it.

"I'm acting odd?" Vaughn retorts, shooting him a quick glance. "You're the one talking to yourself!"

"It's not to myself," Rhys snaps, glaring. "You know it's not to myself!"

"Fine! Then you're the one talking to Handsome Jack!"

"And?"

"You should stop!"

A silence follows Vaughn's words as Rhys simply stares at him. Hurt and confused.

He'd thought they were past this. That Vaughn believed him. Believed in him. But then, maybe he shouldn't have thought that or trusted that feeling so much. Vaughn did betray him already, after all. All of them have, except the bots. Rhys doesn't like holding grudges, but it's so hard to look past the hurt and focus on the logic of Vaughn's supposed betrayal. Self-preservation is a strong, powerful thing, after all, and almost anyone would do anything to save their own skin. He can't really fault Vaughn for throwing him under the bus to ensure his own survival, can he?

But now this. Getting snapped at for talking to himself, when he knows Vaughn knows he's not. He's the only one who knows. Getting snapped at for talking to Jack in the first place. Which, what else is he supposed to do? Jack doesn't like being ignored, and while Rhys might be the only one capable of seeing and communicating with him, that doesn't make him any less real. He's clearly here, and has a mind of his own.

He could walk around Vaughn and see how many fingers he was holding up and accurately relay that information to Rhys. What kind of random computer program in his mind could do that? Could see something he himself couldn't see? So while Jack might be a hologram comprised of coding and data, he still has his own mind and can still think and see for himself, without Rhys's own input. He's still a person, even if he's a hologram right now, and he can't just deny Jack the smallest bit of normalcy by ignoring him completely, especially now that he knows how much Jack doesn't seem to like it.

He'd thought, of everyone, Vaughn would understand this. Would side with him.

Maybe he should have realized how wrong that assumption was. Vaughn did betray him. Vaughn threw him under the bus. If it hadn't been for Jack, they both would have died there in the desert. In the end, it wasn't his best friend that had his back, but a madman stuck in his head.

He's not sure what that says about their friendship.

The silence stretches on.

Vaughn sighs heavily. "I'm sorry," he says quietly. "I'm sorry. I just… I guess I'm just worried."

"Jack can't do anything to you," Rhys says flatly, keeping his gaze focused out the passenger window, anger brewing through him. If he looks at Vaughn right now, he's not sure what he'll say.

"No, but… but he can to you."

"He can give me a headache. Big deal. Not like I don't get those anyway."

It's a downside to having a neural port in his head, connected to his brain. Helpful for work and definitely helpful when trying to survive on Pandora – but at the end of the day, it's still a big risk to his system. His body. Normal people don't have to worry about silly things like computer viruses literally killing them or downing them for any length of time – not physically. Rhys is one of those very few people who do have to worry about that.

So, yes, migraines are common. Jack can also make on spring up on him.

But so what? Migraines suck, but they're nothing new. He knows what to do to lessen the pain and get through it. It's not really hurting him – not in a way that lasts.

"Yeah, but…" Vaughn sighs again. This long, drawn out, tired sigh. Like he's exhausted and tired of this situation.

Well, so what? Rhys is tired too. Vaughn, at least, has gotten thrills by trying to survive on Pandora. A part of him seems to like it here. He doesn't have all this pressure on him to come up with plans or be backup. In fact, the one time Rhys needed him to be there for him, to help him, he sided with Vasquez and tried to hand him over.

And he's not the one with Handsome fucking Jack in his head, so really, he has no reason to be complaining.

If anyone is tired here, tired of this, it's Rhys.

"Look," Vaughn says slowly, and Rhys keeps his gaze firmly locked out the passenger window. "I don't want to fight. Okay? I don't. I… I'm sorry. I just worry about you, bro. You… I… Jack's trouble, okay? He's manipulative and crazy, and I don't like that he's able to control your arm."

"Only sometimes," Rhys says.

"That doesn't matter! What if he tries to kill you with it? Kill someone else?"

Rhys hadn't even thought of that. Fuck.

Vaughn has a point.

Jack is a loose cannon, and is sometimes able to control his strong, robotic arm.

"I won't let him do that," he says, swallowing thickly.

"How can you stop him?" Vaughn demands.

I'd kill myself and take us both out before I let him hurt you guys.

"Just… don't worry about it," he verbally replies. "I'll… think of something. And if it seems like that's happening, just… Fuck. Shoot me."

"Shoot you?" Vaughn all but squeaks, and Rhys can feel his gaze on him. "Shoot you? Shoot you! That's your great plan! I'm not going to shoot you! Are you crazy?"

"What do you want me to say here, Vaughn?"

"Not that!"

"Well, it's all I got right now!" Rhys snaps, finally tearing his gaze from the window to focus on the man in the driver's seat. Vaughn looks small in the large seat, his grip on the steering wheel white-knuckled. "I'm sorry if that's not good enough!" I'm sorry if **I'm** not good enough.

BB swings toward Vaughn, making loud, angry, painful sounds. He must be sensing Rhys's anger and knows it's directed at Vaughn. At least, partially.

Rhys can't really be angry with Vaughn for his logical worries, can he?

What if Jack does use his body to hurt the others?

Jack, as a hologram, can't hurt them, but Jack in Rhys's body certainly can.

Rhys is more angry with himself for not realizing this earlier. For not breaking off from the group before this.

Because that's what he's going to have to do, isn't it? Break away from them. Forget about the vault and try to handle Jack, because Jack's going to be pissed if he learns Rhys is breaking away to not find the vault and to not return to Hyperion. Maybe he can calm him down by trying to find a body for Jack, or working on building one himself, but somehow… he doesn't think that's going to work.

Fuck.

There's no easy solution for this.

"Rhys?"

He swallows, coming back to himself, refocusing on Vaughn, who looks distinctily uneasy.

"Could you, uh – call off your bot, please?"

Rhys looks at BB, who has his weapons out, aiming at Vaughn. "Whoa, BB, no," he says quickly, causing the little bot to hesitate. "Vaughn's not – he's a friend, okay? A friend. We don't shoot friends, no matter how angry we get around them."

The little bot seems confused, but seems to sense Rhys doesn't want Vaughn shot, so its weapons go offline and it beeps aggressively, seemingly giving Vaughn a stern warning before it returns to hovering in the backseat.

"Sorry," Rhys says. "Sorry. I didn't, uh… I guess I need to work on this. I keep forgetting he's tapped into my brain, so…"

"He's what?" Vaughn asks, staring at him briefly before returning his gaze back to the road to keep from swerving off-course. "How is he in your brain?"

"Uh…"

That's complicated. And a long story.

Or, maybe it isn't.

"It was a gift from Jack."

"A gift from Jack?" Vaughn spluttered. "Are you serious?"

"He, uh… well, he helped me there at the Atlas Facility. With, uh… controlling the robots. And he left me Dumpy. I mean, BB. And after I fixed him up, whenever he gets curious about something or wants to shoot something, or someone, he, uh… an alert pops up in my ECHO-eye, connected to him."

And that's… a lot. It's a lot to take in for someone that's not Rhys, who isn't living it and experience it himself.

"I can't believe this," Vaughn groans. "How far is he into your systems, Rhys?"

"Well…"

"How far?"

"Kinda far?"

Vaughn growls under his breath. Rhys can't tell if it's anger or frustration or a mixture of both. "Rhys! Do you not understand how dangerous that is? For all of us?"

"That's why I told you to shoot me!"

"I don't want to shoot you!"

"Well, sorry!"

The tension is building up again. BB beeps angrily in the back, a question mark forming around Vaughn in Rhys's ECHO-eye, colored red for aggression. No, BB. No threat. Easy.

Thinking at the bot seems to work. But, that makes sense, doesn't it? The bot is in his system, about as much as Jack is. Maybe he can think at Jack when they're talking instead of actually talking to him – but Jack seems to need the verbal responses for some reason. Rhys didn't ask why, because that felt rude.

This must be hard for Jack, after all – being here yet not here. Trying to come to terms with the fact he's less than alive right now. Maybe he's even struggling with the fact he died, still. It seemed to confuse him and hit him hard before. Rhys can't imagine being in a similar situation.

Maybe that's why he's easy on Jack? Talks to him, let him into his subsystems? Because he sympathizes? Wants to help?

Fuck. His own good heart is certainly going to be his downfall. And he's a man aware of his own selfish tendencies and greed – and yet he does care about people, too.

Vaughn seems to visibly deflate after a moment. He sighs. "Look, I just… I hope you know what you're doing, Rhys. I'm just… worried about you, bro."

Rhys exhales slowly, willing his cybernetic hand to unclench from the fist it had formed. He wills the tension from his body and hopes that his relaxation calms not only himself, but BB as well, because that's something he's going to have to think about now, too. He can't let his emotions influence the little bot like that. He's going to have to be more careful.

"Yeah, well… I'm scared too," Rhys admits quietly, because it's the truth and he is scared, and worried, and he feels alone.

He just wants things to go back to how they were before – back when he could always count on Vaughn to have his back, could tell him anything…

"I've got your back," Vaughn says.

Rhys smiles thinly. "Yeah, okay."

Except he can't really trust that anymore, can he? Because what if Vasquez or someone else comes back around and offers Vaughn another sweet deal for the low, low price of betraying his best friend? He's done it before, so why not again?

Guess I really am alone…

And it's the worst feeling of all.

BB beeps, bumping into the back of his chair. His thin smile turns a little more real.

Right. I still have you. Thank you, little bot.

At least he can count on the robots. Unless someone reprograms them – they'll have his back, right?

It's not much, but right now, it's going to have to be enough because breaking down in a car in the middle of Pandora is certainly not a good idea.

He has to keep it together a little longer.

Or, forever. Keeping it together forever sounds good.

Just don't think about it and never break down. Sounds like a plan.

xXx

Five hours later, they stop again. It's just beginning to turn daylight, the sun's first rays on the horizon, casting various shades of color across the sky.

They're mainly stopping to rest a little and stretch their legs, then it's back on the move to follow the direction Gortys is giving them. Rhys wishes her directions could be a little better, a little more specific, but he guesses he can't complain. She will lead them to a vault at the end of this, after all, and if they have to use vague directions to find her pieces and put them back together – then that's okay. They can do this. They kind of have to.

"Alright," Fiona sighs as they're all seated in a circle outside the caravan. "We should probably set some ground rules."

"For?" Rhys asks, quirking a brow.

"Well, if we're going to be traveling together for a while, we should discuss sleeping arrangements. Stopping to set up camp isn't really an option, is it? It's not really safe."

She has a point.

"We should all just travel in the caravan," Sasha says. "While someone's driving, the rest of us can take turns sleeping and switching out with the driver. Then we won't have to stop as often, and when we do stop, we can at least be safe in the caravan. It's better than a flimsy tent."

"All very good ideas," Vaughn agrees. "And we'll only have to gas one vehicle instead of two."

Rhys bites his lip. He can't agree with this. How is he supposed to talk to Jack if he's trapped with the others in a tiny vehicle all day? He can picture the headaches Jack will give him if he agrees with this. Besides – he likes the car. He likes the privacy it provides. He likes having his own space – that's sometimes shared with Vaughn, but still, a place where he's not surrounded by strangers.

"Rhys?" Vaughn asks, frowning at him.

Everyone's looking at him now.

He folds his arm over his chest almost defensively. "I like the car," he says. "Besides, what happens if we get in a tight spot and have to split up? The caravan's nice, but a getaway vehicle is good too, right? Or what if we need to run off for supplies? Taking everyone in the caravan might be dangerous. A quick drive by one person in a car would be more efficient and not slow everyone down."

Everyone is quiet for a moment.

"I guess you have a point," Fiona sighs. "Fine. We'll keep the car. But we can tow it behind the caravan to keep from using gas unless we need it, right? And stay together in the caravan."

He's not sure why she's so set on traveling together, in close proximity. To his knowledge, she and her sister hate him and Vaughn since they're from the 'evil corporation'.

Still, he can see he's clearly outnumbered, and this way they do save on gas and get to keep the car. It's a compromise. To argue otherwise would be foolish because this is logically the best move.

That doesn't mean he has to like it, though.

"Fine," he sighs, shaking his head. "I guess we'll do that."

"Don't sound so happy about it," Sasha says, rolling her eyes. "Are we so bad to be around, Hyperion?"

"I'm not a corporation," Rhys tells her. "And I like to, uh… work on the robots alone. Helps me concentrate."

"We'll give you space for that," Fiona promises. "I mean, it's not like we're going to be driving all the time. We'll stop and rest and stretch our legs, but this way seems more efficient. Right?"

He shrugs. "Right."

Jack is not going to be happy about this. Rhys isn't so ecstatic about it, either.

The day might just be beginning, but he can already tell it's going to be a long one.

xXx

He's right. Jack is not happy.

"What the hell is with the tight quarters here, cupcake?"

There's a crease to Jack's brow, barely visible at the top of the mask's edges. A tone to his voice, incredulous but also annoyed. Great.

Rhys sighs, pinching at the bridge of his nose with his flesh hand. He looks up and smiles as Fiona walks by him on the way to the couch, as he's leaning against the wall near the door as Sasha drives. Vaughn is at the back, sitting on the floor, looking through a roadmap of Pandora.

"Rhysie? I don't like being ignored."

Rhys sighs and looks at him, shrugging helplessly.

Jack's eyes narrow. "Did you do this on purpose, Rhysie? You tired of talking to me? You think you can avoid me this way?"

Wow. Being ignored or avoided is really a trigger for him, isn't it?

Rhys coughs into his flesh hand. "Uh, I need a little fresh air. I'm just… gonna head up to the roof."

No one stops him, so he heads to the back of the vehicle, up the ladder and through the hatch leading to the roof of the vehicle. LB and Gortys are up there, near the front of the vehicle as Rhys closes the hatch. Jack is already waiting for him, arms folded across his chest as he sits on the edge of the vehicle.

"Well, cupcake?"

Rhys sighs. "Look, this wasn't my idea, but it's logical."

"Uh huh. And what's logical?"

"We're towing the car with us to save on gas, and… now we're all in this caravan together so I can't really just, uh, talk to you. Sorry."

Jack is quiet for a moment, silently glaring at him. A dull headache begins to form behind Rhys's eyes.

Now Rhys is angry, too. "You can't just give me a headache every time you don't get your way, you know!" he hisses, frustrated.

"Says you, but it looks like I can, pumpkin," Jack says smugly. "And I can make it worse, too."

"Why? This doesn't help you."

"Maybe not, but it hurts you, so that's good enough for me!"

Rhys growls under his breath. "You're an asshole, you know that?"

"You know, cupcake, not many people get to insult me and live to see the next day," Jack says somewhat darkly. "So I'd watch yourself, kid."

"You're stuck with me," Rhys hisses, glaring. "You can hurt me all you fucking want, but at the end of the day, that doesn't help you, does it? You're still just a hologram in my mind."

Jack's expression, his whole demeanor, darkens. "I'd be real careful what you say next."

"Fuck," Rhys says slowly, still glaring, "you."

Jack lunges at him. Rhys holds his ground, not even flinching as that cobweb feeling encases his neck as Jack attempts to strangle him. He glares pointedly at the hologram. A moment later, Jack sits back, shoulders lifting and lowering furiously as he gives exaggerated breaths.

"Not a good idea making enemies with the guy who lives in your head, Rhysie," Jack seethes.

Rhys exhales slowly, a tendril of fear wrapping around his heart, but he can't show weakness. He's tired of being afraid. "I didn't start this conversation looking for an argument, you know. I was just explaining things, and you're the one who got all aggressive and turned it into something angry."

The two sit there, glaring angrily at each other for a long moment.

Finally, Jack tosses his head back and laughs. Rhys stares at him, utterly confused.

"Oh, Rhysie," Jack breathes, wiping a nonexistent tear from his eye. "Not many people have the balls to stand up to me, hologram or not. So kudos, kid. You've officially got bigger balls than half the toughest men on Pandora. And I might actually let you live."

Rhys sighs. "You know, you're exactly inspiring my confidence in you with words like that. You don't always have to be such an arrogant ass, you know."

"Watch it," Jack says, expression sharpening again.

"I'm just saying. I know we're stuck together and yeah, that sucks, not only for you, but me too. But we don't have to keep arguing and threatening each other. I want you out of my head, Jack – I want to help you get your own body. So, really – making enemies with the guy carting you around in his head isn't such a great idea either, is it?" He smiles faux sweetly.

Jack stares at him for a moment, and then grins. "I underestimated you, cupcake. I like this side of you with a backbone."

Rhys rolls his eyes. Jack's mood swings are giving him whiplash. "So can we just get along for once, please? I'm tired of arguing."

"I don't like being ignored."

And it always comes back to that, doesn't it?

"I get that," Rhys says, sighing. "I really do. But you have to understand why I can't just speak to you openly. I know you understand why I can't. So don't get mad at me just because I can't openly speak to you all the time. Hurting me with headaches doesn't help you – it just pisses me off."

"But I don't like being ignored," Jack all but whines, like a child.

"I'm… sorry?"

Jack glares at him for a moment. "I'll tolerate your ignoring me for a little while, but I demand conversations through the day."

"Why?" he can't help but ask. Why is conversation so important for Jack?

"Just because."

He rolls his eyes. "Fine," he huffs. "If I can sneak away or get some alone time – I'll talk to you. But don't actively keep giving me headaches just because you don't get your way. That's childish."

Jack huffs. "I've been called worse."

"I'm sure you have. Do we have a deal?"

Jack grins. "Deal, Rhysie." He holds his hand up for a high-five.

Is he serious? He knows this isn't going to work, right?

Nevertheless, attempting to mend bridges, Rhys raises his hand and high-fives the hologram. It's not at all satisfying because his hand just slides through the blue one and that numb, cold feeling of cobwebs returns.

"Well," he sighs, "that wasn't remotely satisfying."

"Yeah, not really," Jack agrees, almost dismally. "But good effort!"

"Who are you talking to?" LB asks, and Rhys flinches at the sudden robotic voice. He glances over to find LB and Gortys watching him.

"Uh…" he says, swallowing. "Myself."

"Do all humans do that?" Gortys asks, clearly confused.

"Yep!" he says. "It's just not something we advertise and it's kind of embarrassing, so if you could just not mention this to the others…"

"Oh!" she says, cheerfully. "Is this another secret?"

"Yes! A secret, exactly."

"Okay!"

"Thanks," he says, smiling at the bots.

"This is great," Jack laughs, causing Rhys's attention to go back to him. "Even the bots think you're crazy!"

"I'm not crazy," Rhys snaps, before wincing because to the bots, that will certainly sound crazy.

"I never… said you were?" Gortys says.

"You are weird," LB says.

"Ugh, I know," Rhys groans, shaking his head. "Just – don't mention this to the others, okay? For my sanity."

The bots just stare at him.

Ugh. Great.

A sudden alert pops up in his ECHO-eye.

[DANGER – ALERT – DANGER]

There's red all over his vision. He blinks and activates his ECHO-eye.

BB has detected a threat ahead. Something coming toward them quickly, and it seems to have the girls worried and on high alert in the caravan below.

"RHYS!" voices call from below. There's banging on the hatch leading to the roof. "RHYS!"

"Shit," Rhys breathes as he zooms in with his ECHO-eye, pushing his way to the front of the vehicle.

There are three vehicles heading for them with mounted guns on them.

In the front seat sits August and another lady Rhys doesn't recognize.

In another vehicle sits Vasquez.

That's when a rocket launcher is shot at them.


	9. Divide and Conquer

"RHYS!"

Vaughn bangs on the hatch door, pulse racing.

"RHYS!"

He doesn't know if Rhys can hear him and his fingers are trembling too much to open the hatch's latch.

"Oh no," Sasha says from the driver's seat. "Incoming!"

Vaughn twists around to look out the front window. There's something coming at them. Something dangerous. If he squints he can make out the rocket launcher missile coming at them, and they have no way to stop it.

"Brace yourselves!" Fiona shouts, diving into a seat.

Vaughn clings to the ladder, frozen in terror. Rhys is on the roof; if that hits, he'll get flung off or worse. "Rhys!" he yells again.

There's a loud boom as the rocket missile explodes, but there's no violent shaking. The caravan doesn't seem hit – no one is knocked off their feet, although everyone is still clinging to something, bracing themselves for a moment longer before they hesitantly look up and realize they aren't, in fact, hit.

Vaughn stares at the smoke ahead, where the missile used to be.

It's gone. The vehicles are still coming, but that shot is gone.

Vaughn's grip on the ladder is still tight, despite the relief ebbing through him. He looks back at the hatch and forces semi-numb fingers to finally grasp the latch and shove. The hatch opens upward and he climbs up onto the roof.

Rhys is at the front of the vehicle, neural port glowing as he holds his robotic hand in front of him, a barely visible screen flashing from his palm. Next to him is Loader Bot, back-up guns online and ready despite the fact it makes him immobile, since he needs to use his arms and hands to move due to his lack of a lower body. The weapons are weak and not very accurate at long-range – unless guided by someone else.

Vaughn exhales slowly, not wanting to disturb Rhys's focus should another rocket launcher missile be shot at them. He takes a few steps forward to stand behind Rhys, Loader Bot, and the little robot Gortys. Briefly, he wonders if Jack is nearby, if he's watching Rhys or giving him pointers. How can a hologram give pointers or help in this situation? Didn't Rhys say something about Jack helping him at the Atlas Facility? Now that he thinks back on it, Rhys was rather… strong there, in a way he's never been before. He's been good at hacking and programming, sure, but he's never managed to do so without an actual computer system he's linked into, despite his upgrades.

But that day…

At the facility, he waved his hands and things reacted. They moved. They shot.

It was almost… scary, to be honest. Intimidating in a way the taller man usually wasn't. Not that Rhys couldn't be a force to be reckoned with – he just usually wasn't. He was usually a nice, goofy guy with a brain. He looked normal, and not like a dork, but he was just as much a nerd as Vaughn.

He isn't scary.

Until suddenly, he is.

Watching him now, focused on the cars ahead – all he has to do is flick his metal finger and Loader Bot seems to know exactly what he wants, what he needs, firing off a few quick shots guided by Rhys's personal targeting system in his ECHO-eye. No words are spoken. His presence goes unnoticed.

Rhys is in his element, surrounded by robots, in the heat of battle atop a quickly moving caravan. It's intimidating, it's scary, and it's everything Rhys usually isn't – but somehow it suits him. Like it's natural, like this is where he belongs, and a part of Vaughn struggles to accept this fact, struggles with disconnecting this version of Rhys from the friend he knows and loves.

The vehicles are closer now. Vaughn can hear the rough revving of their engines despite the wind lapping at his face.

"Rhys!"

Vaughn flinches, startled as the voice shouts from right behind him. Fiona rushes past him, pushing through the bots to get to Rhys. Rhys switches his gaze toward her, ECHO-eye glowing.

"We need you at the wheel," Fiona says quickly. "You can dodge them like before, right?"

They were chased by a rakkhive before, after all, as well as being shot by moonshots from Helios. Rhys managed to dodge them when he was at the wheel due to his ECHO-eye predicting where they would land and helping him avoid them.

It had been one of those moments where Vaughn felt validated in his belief that Rhys was, in fact, amazing. Not that he didn't think that anyway, because his friend was awesome. Rhys was a great friend, and he had some good ideas and a good head on his shoulders. But in that moment, the assumption that Rhys could get them out of anything felt validated, and Vaughn wasn't the only one to see it that time. Fiona and Sasha seemed impressed, too.

"Are you sure?" Rhys asks. "What if they shoot more rocket launchers at us?"

"You can dodge them," Fiona says again.

"Dodge rocket launchers?" Rhys asks, frowning at her.

"Can you or can you not help us?"

Rhys exhales loudly. "Fine. Let's go."

He notices Vaughn for the first time then. Vaughn smiles timidly, waving slightly, and Rhys nods at him as he walks past. It's somehow more than what Vaughn was expecting, despite the fact that until very recently, they were best friends. He wonders, idly, if they'll ever be that close again – if being this close to Rhys will feel as natural as it used to, or if it will always feel a little awkward since he doesn't really know where he stands with Rhys right now.

They all three head back inside the caravan, leaving Loader Bot and Gortys on top. Rhys trades places with Sasha and slides into the driver's seat, ECHO-eye activating again, and it's oddly reminiscent of last time – before they were left stranded alone in the desert, ultimately having to steal Vasquez's car to escape.

Vaughn wonders if Vasquez is still alive. His arm was shot off at the Atlas Facility, after all. He can't really see that August guy patching him up willingly.

It doesn't really matter, though.

Vasquez is dead to him.

It was his stupid deal that ruined his friendship with Rhys, and for that, Vasquez will never be forgiven.

The caravan jerks to the left harshly under Rhys's erratic steering, throwing Vaughn off his feet. He crashes to the floor, wincing when his head knocks against the wall. The girls are sitting on the couch, holding on for dear life, and he quickly scrambles to join them. Next to him, the little dumpy robot, BB, hovers somewhat nervously, making scratchy, beeping noises which really grate on his already frayed nerves.

He glares at the little robot. "Could you back off?" he mutters.

The bot rushes at his face, beeping wildly, but stops suddenly, backing off before it rushes to hover over Rhys's left shoulder.

Rhys spares the little bot a quick glance, giving it a tiny nod, before he goes back to looking out the front window. Vaughn can make out the vehicles quite clearly, which leaves a knot tightening in his stomach.

"Oh shit," Rhys suddenly mutters. "Hold onto your seats! This might get rough."

He jerks the caravan to the side. Something explodes on the ground near the wheel, causing the vehicle to jump upward, balanced on two wheels for a moment before it slams back to the ground. Vaughn's head throbs from the whiplash and jerky movements, as well as the fact he smacked his head.

"Can't this thing go any faster?" Vaughn asks.

"You want to get closer to the people trying to kill us?" Sasha asks.

"We can pass them if they're in mid-boost," Fiona says suddenly. "Rhys! Slow down and get them to boost at us! If we pass them when they're in mid-boost, they can't just shut it off and turn around! They'll have to wait for it to end and then turn! It could give us a head start!"

"Got it!" Rhys calls back.

The caravan slows. Vaughn's fingers curl uncomfortably tight into the couch cushions. The table in front of him is a steady brace against his chest. He squeezes his eyes closed, tension bleeding through him, his heart racing in his chest as he struggles to remain calm in this car chase.

The adrenaline Pandora brings is real. Strong, addictive, but also terrifying.

Is this how everyone feels on Pandora?

It's like a drug in and of itself.

The caravan has slowed to a crawl.

There's the loud sound of their enemies' engines as they whiz past them. A second later, Vaughn is thrown to the side as the caravan shoots forward, Rhys activating their own boost.

It's not as violent as before, and he doesn't have to worry about flying out the back of it like last time. It's still nauseatingly powerful, though. He flies out of his seat despite his hands clawing at the cushions, and he hits the back wall harshly, sliding down it to sit on the floor. It's like his heart is trying to beat out of his chest.

A minute later, the boost ends. They're still speeding through the Pandoran wastelands, but it feels like a snail's pace compared to how fast they were previously moving with the boost engaged. Vaughn shakily gets to his feet, rubbing at his head which throbs painfully. He's familiar enough with treating headaches, though he doesn't often get migraines himself. He knows what helps Rhys, though, but somehow, right now, he doesn't think it'd go over well if he asked Rhys to do the same for him.

They're still not on 'best friend' terms.

He wishes they were, because he misses him. He misses his friend. He misses their easy comradely. Their easy friendship. How natural it felt, so un-forced.

Now it's all so messed up, and he knows it's his fault, but how long can Rhys hold a grudge? He's never held a grudge like this before.

Granted, Vaughn has never betrayed him like this before, either, but still. Is Jack influencing him that much?

Jack. The man in a nuisance, even in death. Vaughn never much liked the guy, but he was head of the company he strived to work for, mostly to follow after Rhys, but the company had some nice benefits despite its president being a homicidal maniac. Then Jack died and it was easier, but also worse. Everyone vied for power, including Rhys, but Vaughn couldn't blame him for that. He and Yvette helped Rhys as much as they could, but then came the vault key deal.

Now they're stuck on Pandora, and that homicidal maniac is in his best friend's head, influencing him, hurting him, and there's nothing Vaughn can do about it because he's just an accountant. Rhys has always been the technological one, but even he seems confused as to how to get Jack out of his head.

He also doesn't seem to be trying all that hard, either.

Vaughn winces almost as soon as he thinks it. It's not Rhys's fault. He knows that. They've been busy, and they've been running for their lives, hunted by Pandorans and their former coworkers alike, so it's not his fault that he hasn't had time to attempt to get Jack out of his head.

But a part of Vaughn wonders if Rhys would try to do it anyway.

If he'd yank Jack out as easily as putting him in.

He feels horrible for thinking that, for doubting his friend at all, but Rhys has been acting different since Jack started appearing to him. He's been distant, and quiet, and angry. Quick to anger, quick to argue, taking everything offensively. It almost feels like he can't just talk to Rhys anymore, and he hates that feeling with a passion.

They're best friends, after all – he shouldn't feel like he can't tell Rhys everything.

It's an odd, foreign feeling that he absolutely hates. He misses his best friend.

Whatever adrenaline he's getting from Pandora, he can't wait until they get back to Hyperion, get Jack out of Rhys's head, and he gets his friend back.

"Where should we go?" Rhys asks from the driver's seat. "They're not within visual range yet."

"Keep heading for the next piece," Fiona says. "We need Gortys put together. After we find the vault, we'll have more than enough money to get off this planet and make new lives for ourselves."

Rhys is quiet, but he turns right around a rocky mound, kicking up dust in the air.

That's when the moonshots start.

xXx

Son of a bitch!

What else can go wrong today?

Rhys grits his teeth, ECHO-eye re-activating as he tracks where the moonshots will land. Dodging them is trickier, considering there's extra weight in the back thanks to Vasquez's red car.

Wait…

Bad idea. Very bad, terrible, awful idea.

"Take the wheel," he says, pushing to his feet.

"What?" come several voices.

"Hyperion's after me," he says. "And Vasquez's car is much, uh, well it's easier to maneuver in. No offense."

It makes sense in his head. It's a terrible idea, but it keeps them safe, and he has a higher chance of dodging quickly in the car. This way, they don't have to worry about the moonshots and August and Vasquez.

They can divide and conquer.

"That's the worst idea I've ever heard," Vaughn says, staring at him, horrified.

Rhys grins. "Oh, come on. I'm sure I've had worse ones before. Remember that time I said we should steal Vasquez's deal?"

"I'm serious!" Vaughn says, glaring at him.

"I'm kind of siding with Vaughn here," Fiona says, frowning at him.

Sasha has, thankfully, slid into the driver's seat, aware that Rhys has abandoned it. "Seems kinda suicidal to me," she says.

"I can dodge them," Rhys says. "This way you don't have to worry about the vehicles chasing us and the moonshots. Divide and conquer."

There's a beat of silence.

"Uh, I'm kinda siding with them on this, pumpkin," Jack says from where he's leaning against the back wall, watching them all.

"Okay," Fiona sighs. "It's… logical." Her eyes narrow. "You really think you can dodge them all?"

"Of course," Rhys says, smirking at her.

"What?" Vaughn says, frowning. "This is crazy!"

"Be careful," Sasha says, glancing back at him quickly. "But, uh, be quick, because I can't dodge these things like you can!"

A moonshot lands right in front of her, causing her to jerk the wheel to the side quickly. Everyone is flung off their feet, including Rhys, who hits his flesh elbow hard against the table. Ow, fucking shit! He holds said elbow, grimacing.

"How do you plan on even getting into the car while we're moving?" Vaughn asks. "This is a terrible plan!"

"Kinda agreeing with the nerd here, Rhysie," Jack adds.

Jack. Rhys grins. "I can hack the car like before. Cut it loose, get it driving, and jump in when it's next to the door."

"Well, whatever you're doing, hurry!" Sasha snaps. "I can't dodge these!"

Rhys looks pointedly at Jack. Jack glares back.

"I don't agree with this plan, cupcake. Why should I help you?"

Really?

He stalks toward Jack, acting like he's just going to grab a knife from the back counter where the silverware is stashed. "Please," he huffs under his breath.

"Ugh, please?" Jack says, rolling his eyes. "That's so childish, Rhysie. I don't like this plan. What if we die?"

"Please," he says again, in a quiet whisper, staring pleadingly at Jack.

Jack sighs heavily. "Fine, but if you even think about dying I'm going to give you such a killer headache-"

As he goes on with his threats about inflicting pain upon Rhys's person, Rhys turns and smiles at the others, holding out the knife he grabbed. "Alright, I'm ready. Incoming shot, by the way – jerk left… now!"

Sasha jerks left. They barely dodge the moonshot, the caravan shaking with the effort. Rhys staggers but regains his footing.

"New plan," he says. "I'll climb up top, jump on the car, cut it free, and start it before I jump in so it's already moving into position. Then I'll send a broadcast out to let them know I'm here."

If he tries to bring up his profile and access his work files, they're going to know it's him and be able to pinpoint his location. It's why he hasn't tried since before he put Nakayama's ID drive into his head and his life went to hell.

"Whatever, just do it!" Sasha snaps.

"This is stupid," Vaughn says. "You can't honestly think this is a good idea! Fiona?"

"If he thinks he can do it, I say let him," she says, nodding at Rhys. "But be careful. We can't afford to lose anyone right now."

He smiles at her. He's not sure she actually cares about him, but at least she's trying, even if it's only pretend.

He climbs up the ladder, pushes the hatch open, and stands on top of the caravan.

"Moonshot incoming!" he shouts down the open hatch. "Jerk right in 3.7 seconds!"

He's already jumping when the caravan jerks. He barely lands on the car which lags behind a second. He's on the roof of it now, wincing at his aching tailbone which took the brunt of his fall onto the car's surface. He takes his concentration off the moonshots to instead focus on the car, easily finding the ignition and acceleration interfaces. He starts the car, revs the engine, and reaches forward to physical cut the cable pulling the car behind the caravan.

There's a harsh jerking motion as the cable cuts loose and the car spins out of control, untethered but speeding. Tires squeal, spinning against the loose dirt on the ground as Rhys clings to the hood for dear life. A second later, power floods through him like it did in the Atlas Facility – Jack helping him. Empowering him.

Just like before, it's almost overwhelming and intoxicating. Like he can do anything. The sky's the limit.

He inhales slowly, breathing the power in, and finds he doesn't need to climb inside the car. His metal hand has a death grip on the hood, scrunching a bit of the surface. Filled with power, he quickly sends a broadcast to Hyperion letting them know his location has, in fact, changed. As long as they're only after him, they should stop aiming for the caravan and instead shoot at the car.

He veers right, away from the caravan.

The moonshots land closer to him. He follows their trajectory, filled with Jack's helpful power, and manages to steer around the next few moonshots rather easily. It's like he's not even sitting on top of the car guiding it and calculating the moonshots' trajectories. Instead, it's almost like he is the car – like they're one in the same, a single entity with a common goal in mind.

All other thought fades from his mind.

It's just him, the car, and the moonshots.

"Yeah, yeah, don't let the power go to your head, babe."

Jack's voice jerks him from his thoughts. The car jerks to the side as well, well before it was supposed to. The moonshot lands right next to it, causing the car to tremble and shake, threatening to make it spin in an out-of-control donuts but he manages to wrench his control on the auto-steering and realign it with its desired axis.

He throws a glare at the hologram sitting next to him on the hood.

"Not helping," he hisses.

"I'm helping quite a lot, actually," Jack points out, and he's not wrong. Without his help, Rhys definitely wouldn't be able to do this right now. "While I'm happy to help, pumpkin, this is kind of draining and it's not gonna last much longer."

Rhys throws him a quick glance. The blue outline of the man is dimmer than usual, and flickering erratically. Jack looks tired. Like helping Rhys like this is draining his energy.

"Oh," he says, suddenly realizing. "Shit, I'm sorry. I didn't realize."

"Uh huh," Jack says nonchalantly, like he's not flickering like a mad man, in and out of existence right now. "Moonshots should be out of power in another three shots. Take a while to recharge."

Jack would know, of course. He helped design the damn thing.

The next moonshot gets a little close to home. Jack's power is obviously diminishing; Rhys doesn't feel like an all-powerful god right now – instead he feels a little overwhelmed, trying to keep track of everything at once by himself. When he glances over again, Jack is nowhere to be seen.

"Great," he mutters, attempting to focus on everything all at once, "on my own now."

He can do this, he tells himself. Easy.

This is easy.

Just focus on the car – acceleration, steering, ignition… all at once.

Just focus on the moonshots – shot speed, trajectory, how he needs to maneuver to avoid it.

Just focus on holding on – gripping the car's hood tightly and willing his suddenly exhausted body to hold on and move with the sudden turns.

It's like the power steering is going out. It's hard to spin the wheel.

Suddenly he wishes he was actually inside the car, but that's his own fault. He should have climbed in anyway instead of staying out here, but it seemed easier at the time – less movement, less chance for him to fall while trying to climb into the moving car, less for him to focus on. Now he regrets everything.

And Jack's not here to help. He didn't realize how much Jack was helping him until now.

He's so tired. His head aches, his neural port feels like it's on fire, and he's beginning to wonder if his robotic hand will ever unclench enough to release the bunched up metal of the car's hood.

The final moonshot fires from Helios.

That's when his ECHO-eye decides to go dead. The pain in his temple is bordering on unbearable, and he can't focus on the moonshot and the car at once.

He focuses on the moonshot.

Tracks its trajectory.

Manages to dodge as he's flung off the hood of the car, his cybernetic arm jerking painfully at his shoulder as his fingers stick to the curved metal. He forces his fingers to release and flies off the hood of the car in the final turn, letting his concentration die away as the car begins to stall and spin out of control.

The ground is rough and unforgiving beneath him. He hits it rolling, hoping to lessen the pain of the fall, but it still hurts anyway. His head smashes against the ground.

Then there's nothing.

xXx

He comes to sometime later. It's the pain that wakes him, and dreams of fire all around him. the burning pain ignites and sparks clarity, however briefly, into his shattered thoughts. His eyes open and he sits up, his last thoughts of adrenaline and escape.

It's dark out.

Fuck.

How long has he been out? It was daylight before.

His head hurts. A lot. He brings his flesh hand up and touches it to his forehead. Blood comes away wet and sticky on his fingertips, despite however long it's been since he lost consciousness. A shallow wound, but steadily leaking blood. At least it's not deep, or he'd most likely be dead.

He looks around. He's alone. In the distance is a vague outline of a car in the moonlight offered by Elpis. At least the car is still here, but where is everyone else?

And that's when he remembers: Oh yeah. We never agreed on a rendezvous point.

He's stuck out here alone, and injured, and no one is around at all. He doesn't know where to meet the others.

Suddenly his awesome (read: terrible) plan to 'divide and conquer' seems like a real failure. A stupid idea. But Rhys is full of bad ideas.

He lays back down. Everything aches – his body, his head, his eyes. Even his ECHO-eye hurts. The port on the side of his head is unbearable. It's the source of the burning fire, the white-hot pain.

"Jack?" he calls quietly, and winces at the sound of his own voice.

Jack's not around.

Hasn't been around.

Right. So, on my own. The usual, I guess.

He's not sure when it became the usual, but it is now. And he doesn't really like it. At all.

He sighs and brings his cybernetic hand up to his forehead. The chill of the metal is soothing, calming against the white-hot pain in his head.

Come on, Rhys, he tells himself, mentally urging himself into action. You can do this. The car will be so much better. More comfy. Definitely warmer. Just get up and get inside the car. Safer. Warmer. Comfier. C'mon. You can do it.

He doesn't move. Hurts too much.

Closes his eyes.

"-sie…"

A voice echoes around him. There, but not there. Confusing as hell. He ignores it because thinking hurts way too much right now.

"Rh-"

Please go away.

"Rhys!" the voice comes in loud and clear that time.

Rhys's eyes snap open. Jack's hovering over him, glaring down at him.

"Don't sleep, pumpkin," Jack says, and while his face is twisted in what looks like anger, his voice is actually calm and almost worried. What the hell? "You got a nasty bump on your head, kid. Get up. Get moving."

Oh, now he wants Rhys moving? Where was he this whole time?

Moving hurts. Better to just lay here. If Jack's here, he can sleep, right? Jack can keep watch…

"Hey – hey!" Jack snaps, and that cobweb feeling passes across his forehead. "I said no sleeping. It's not safe here, cupcake. If you die out here because you decided to ignore me and sleep the night away I am going to be super freaking pissed, do you hear me, Rhysie?"

Jack's voice is oddly soothing. A constant flow of similar sound. Like a lullaby almost.

Rhys's eyes close.

{Sorry I'm such a lazy asshole}


	10. Missteps

"Rhys!"

Jack can feel himself slipping – flickering, like he's being pulled away into a sea of nothing, and he absolutely hates it. He glares down at Rhys's stupidly pale face. The blood on it contrasts with the pallor, making him grimace. The kid is in pain, he knows, and sleep might sound like the best idea in the world, but it's not.

Jack has no way to force him to stay awake, though. He knows Rhys's head is already on fire; creating more pain will just make him pass out completely, and that's not what he wants. That won't help either of them.

Rhys is slipping, which means Jack is slipping, which means everything is slipping.

Panic mingles with his anger. Anger at this stupid idiot for doing this stupid shit in the first place. He told him it was a shitty idea, but did the code monkey listen? No. And now here they are, both of them slipping – Rhys from pain and injury and the chill of the night air, and Jack because Rhys himself is slipping. Jack isn't a physical manifestation, not really, so what the hell is he supposed to do to keep them both alive out here?

Fucking hell, kiddo, he thinks with a groan. Since when was he the responsible one?

He doesn't like flickering like this – feeling here and not here, alive but something less than. It's a push and pull of sensations he really doesn't need right now, not when he's trying to focus. Rhys's face is flickering in and out of existence, though – Jack's own vision is failing, but why? He's fine. He's not hurt. Rhys is.

He grits his non-existent teeth and jabs his finger against the port on the side of Rhys's head. Instead of simply sliding through like it does with everything else, his finger stabs at the port and he can actually feel it, like it's something tangible.

The second his finger touches the port, Rhys's eyes fly open wide, a shocked breath emerging from his mouth.

"W-What?" Rhys asks, looking around wildly.

"Up and at 'em, kiddo," Jack says, flicking the port again. "Rise and shine!"

Rhys jumps to his feet, passing right through Jack's non-existent body. Jack steps back, grinning at the kid.

Well. Had he known it was that easy to get the kid moving, he would have tried that a lot sooner instead of doing something stupid like worrying. Because Handsome Jack doesn't worry. It's just not in his nature. No.

Jack is tired too, after all. Sharing his… energy, or whatever it is, with Rhys during the car chase wasn't easy. Empowering the kid like that isn't easy. It's tiring and exhausting and he remembers himself just… slipping away, similar to how he was this time, but… At least last time, he had the knowledge that Rhys was awake and wouldn't let the two of them die.

He doesn't like being the responsible one, in charge of Rhys's physical safety. Giving him a headache to wake him up is one thing, but it's another matter entirely when the code monkey is hurt and slipping into unconsciousness rather than sleep.

Rhys's energy is dying down again, now that the shock from before is fading.

"Where… are we?" he asks, spinning in a slow circle to look around them.

Jack shrugs. "In the Pandoran wastelands somewhere. I don't know. It was your shitty idea."

Rhys throws him a brief glare, but there's no real heat behind it. He seems too tired for that.

"Probably better to get in the car, kid. Get away from here."

The car isn't too far away, visible in its outline thanks to Elpis's light. It's not great shelter, but it's far better than the chill of Pandora's cold nights and offers better protection. At least it will take a skag a minute or two to eat through the car's door before it gets to you. That's something, at least.

"Yeah, okay…" Rhys says, exhaling slowly. "Let me just-"

He stops suddenly, frowning.

"Vaughn?" he asks, rubbing at his head.

Oh, great. What's the buff nerd want? He didn't come looking for them, Jack knows, so what does he want now?

He folds his arms across his chest and glares at Rhys.

"We've done more than enough for them, Rhysie," he says sternly. "If they're not coming to pick us up then we're done with them, do you hear me?"

Rhys needs medical attention, at least. Jack's incorporeal for the time being, so he can't help with that and Rhys isn't currently carrying supplies for that to patch himself up, so as much as Jack dislikes his meat-buddy's friends, at least they can help him in a way Jack can't right now. Soon, though. Soon he'll be physical again. Just not yet.

"Where are you guys?" Rhys asks seriously, frowning. "Um… I don't-…" A heavy sigh as he runs his flesh hand through his hair, wincing as it hits a knot on his head, fingertips coming away red. "Okay, I'll… see what I can do. I don't… Just stay safe." He sighs, the ECHO-chat apparently ended, and he makes his way toward the car.

"So…" Jack says, following behind him, glaring at the back of his head. "What'd the nerd want? Is he coming to get us?" God help you if the answer is no, kiddo.

"He and the others, uh… ran into some trouble," Rhys says quietly, using his metal arm to pry the car door open. He all but falls inside, very ungracefully, and Jack sighs as he appears in the passenger seat.

"Uh huh. What kind of trouble?"

"I guess Vasquez and August captured the girls but Vaughn got a message through to me. They need help."

Jack settles the full force of his glare on the code monkey, watching him wince and rub at his head. "And you said you'd help, didn't you?" he accuses angrily. "Of all the stupid things you've done today, Rhysie, this takes the cake! You're in no shape to help them."

"I have to try," Rhys says, frowning as he rests his forehead briefly against the cool steering wheel. He looks pathetic and miserable and Jack sighs heavily.

"Well, I say no," he says firmly. "You're in no shape to help them or even look after yourself. I'm in no shape to help you, either. So we're not going."

"Uh… I wasn't asking you?" Rhys tries, sparing him a quick glance.

His pupils are all uneven and stupid-looking. Fuck.

"No," Jack says again. "They had their chance. You did the stupid suicidal thing and lived. Got the moonshots off their back, did your stupid little plan. Now it's their turn to take care of themselves and if they can't do it, tough luck. We're not helping them."

"I can't just leave them," Rhys says.

"You don't even know where they are."

"I do, actually. Vaughn, uh… gave me coordinates."

Jack glares once more. Amping up the kid's headache. "I said no."

Now Rhys is glaring back at him, defiance written all over his face. "Well, I said yes."

This stupid code monkey! Does he really not get it?

"I'm trying to help you here!" Jack snaps.

"Could have fooled me!" Rhys says back.

"If you run out there injured like this, half-cocked, you're going to get yourself killed!"

"What do you care!"

"I live in your head, genius! I kind of need you to stay alive!" The anger burns away inside of him, like it's physical and he's not. "It's one thing to throw your own life away, princess, but it's selfish to throw mine away too!"

"You already died!" Rhys snaps, glaring back at him.

Jack glowers at him for a moment in silence. Finally, he huffs, "I'm not dead."

Rhys deflates slightly. "Sorry. I didn't, uh… Fuck. I didn't mean to snap at you. You're only looking out for me, which is… weird, but… well… thanks."

"Are you done being a little bitch yet?"

"I have to help them," Rhys says, sighing heavily. "What do you want me to say here?"

"Maybe that you value your life – and mine – a little more than you seem to be showing."

"I'm sorry… I don't want either of us to die, but I can't just sit back and leave them behind."

"They left you behind, pumpkin."

There's a long, drawn-out silence after that. Jack glowers at the code monkey, arms folded across his chest as he leans back in the passenger seat. His knees go through the dashboard since the nerd was the last one to have been sitting in the passenger seat, leaving it pushed forward since he was so short.

"We can't find the vault without them," Rhys says finally, glancing at him. "The core of Gortys or whatever is imprinted on both of us. We need the caravan and its equipment to survive on our own, and we'll need the fire power opening a vault, right? It's better to work in a group, and that means going after them."

"Or we could find other people to help us," Jack points out easily.

"We still need Gortys, who was in the caravan with the girls. Which means August and Vasquez have her."

Fuck. The kid has a point. Dammit.

"Fine," Jack huffs, glaring at him. "But we're not doing this half-cocked. We're going to rest for a while, find a way to patch you up, and when you're not under 50%, we'll worry about getting their sorry asses."

Rhys blinks at him. "Alright, deal."

"They probably won't kill them if they're trying to get you too," Jack says. "They'll try to use them as bait, and I'm not entirely convinced that's not what your little friend's message was."

Rhys remains quiet.

Jack sighs. "We're going to have to work on your self-preservation instincts, Rhysie. In the meantime, drive this baby somewhere secluded and you can rest for a bit. I'll keep watch."

"… Thanks."

"Don't be getting soft on me, pumpkin."

Rhys rolls his eyes, then winces at the movement. "Wouldn't dream of it."

"Just get going, cupcake."

His patience is already wearing thin. He doesn't agree with this plan, just like he didn't agree with the previous plan – but he can't exactly stop Rhys, can he? The most he can do is help and make sure they both don't die, or at least put up a fight first.

He almost admires Rhys's determination, but there's a fine line between reckless and suicidal.

It takes Rhys a long moment to be able to turn on the car. After the engine starts, Rhys sits there, looking rather ill, swallowing harshly against the bile in his throat. Jack smirks at him.

"That nausea getting to ya, kid?"

"Shut up," Rhys mumbles, blinking at the steering wheel. "Just… let me get myself together."

"Uh huh. No one's stopping you."

"Fuck. My head hurts." His cybernetic hand goes up to rest on his forehead.

"Concussions will do that."

"You're really not helping."

Jack rolls his eyes. "Well, I can't do everything, kiddo! I told you this was a stupid idea. Just like I told you your last idea was stupid, but you didn't listen to me then just like you're not listening to me now. You act like I'm trying to sabotage you here."

"I can't argue with you right now," Rhys groans, rubbing at his head. "And your voice is stupidly soothing so just – stop talking. I'm tired."

"My voice is not stupid-" Rhys's words catch up to him. "Wait, soothing? What? Uh, kiddo, the hell?"

Rhys groans. "Just ignore that."

"You like my voice, kiddo? I mean, of course you do. Everyone does. Hell, even I do."

Rhys sighs. "Please stop talking."

"How do I know you won't fall asleep if I stop talking? Sleeping at the wheel is a shitty idea, kiddo."

"How do you know I won't fall asleep with you talking?"

Jack scoffs. "I could always poke your port again."

"Is that what that was?" Rhys asks, grimacing. "That felt… weird. And painful. Don't do that again."

So he did feel something, though. It almost makes Jack want to poke it again, just to be felt. It's something physical he can do. Something that makes him feel less… like he is.

And then he's angry for even feeling that way in the first place. He might look incorporeal, but that doesn't make him less than. He's still here. Still alive.

"So uh, we gonna get moving or you just gonna sit there all night?" he finally asks, looking out the passenger window.

"Yeah, just… fuck. Okay. Yeah, let's go."

He looks back at the kid. His expression is scrunched in pain.

Nevertheless, Rhys starts driving.

xXx

There's a lot of pain. Throbbing. Incessantly.

Fuck me.

His vision blurs in and out. His ECHO-eye struggles to compensate, but even its vision is flickering in and out. The pain is a burning white-hot needle digging into his skull, threatening to send him back into unconsciousness.

When he brings his flesh hand to the port on his head, he feels the crusted blood around it. Did he hit the port when he was flung off the car? Is that why it hurts like a bitch? It's the only explanation that makes sense. If it's damaged, it would explain the pain, the way his ECHO-eye won't really focus, and why Jack seems to keep flickering in his seat.

He wonders if Jack has noticed.

Jack hasn't spoken to him since they started driving. Rhys isn't sure how long they've been moving; his sense of time is skewed to hell. He keeps spacing out, and when he comes back to himself, he finds he can't remember the past few minutes, or hours, or however long. There are chunks of travel he can't recall.

He knows that's bad. He knows the pain in his head is bad. The damaged port is worse; it's connected to his brain. Any damage to it can be life-threatening.

He knows he's not 100%. Or, according to Jack, even 50%. He feels shitty.

But Vaughn and the girls need help. He can't let them down.

He wonders how they got captured, but Vaughn didn't elaborate. First he asked if Rhys was okay, which was touching. Then he said they were all in trouble, and warned him that they were being used as bait. Apparently they forgot to take Vaughn's glasses from him, which could double as a small computer similar to Rhys's ECHO-eye, but not as detailed or attached, physically, to his body. So Vaughn was able to get a brief message out, calling for help and warning Rhys.

But what could Rhys do? He knows this is a trap for him, but he can't just leave them at Vasquez's mercy.

Vasquez. His anger at the man continues to grow.

He blinks, aware that he's spaced out again. It's getting too easy to do that, to forget spans of time.

When he can't see straight and the world continually seems to spin, he finds a place to park in the darkness, hidden by rocky cliffs around him, and turns off the engine.

Speaking is difficult. The words don't want to form, but he struggles to push them out nevertheless. "Gonna sleep," he says, vision swimming.

"Is that a good idea?" Jack asks.

"Probably not… but gonna do it anyway."

He doesn't even bother shifting the seat back at a more comfortable angle, or climbing into the backseat. He just slumps over the steering wheel, darkness claiming him.

xXx

Awakening from unconsciousness rather than sleep is a terrible experience, at least in Rhys's honest opinion. It's not like waking up from sleep. It's not a slow rise to clarity and awareness. Instead, there's darkness one minute, then sudden alertness the next. You're just flung into it, left sitting up gasping for breath, adrenaline suddenly flooding through you – and it's a terrible feeling.

Rhys springs forward and nearly whacks his head on the driver's side window. Confusion floods through him, memories taking longer to appear through the haze of pain, fear, and chaos clouding his mind. He's in a car in the middle of nowhere; it's dark, it's chilly, and his head is killing him.

His body is sore, too.

He groans, rubbing at the back of his neck, fingers digging into the stiff muscles, attempting to work out some of the tense knots. A flicker of blue to his right leaves him jumping, startled as he looks over and finds Jack watching him, arms folded across his chest. The hologram quirks a non-existent brow at him.

"Better, cupcake?"

Rhys swallows, struggling to find his voice. "How long was I… uh… asleep?"

"Asleep? Pfft, you weren't asleep, pumpkin," Jack says, rolling his eyes. "But you were out for a good ten hours."

"A good ten…" His eyes widen. That's bad. Why is that bad? "Vaughn. Shit."

The others were captured. He has to help them.

"Fuck…"

"I found something interesting in the trunk, by the way," Jack says nonchalantly. "I tried to wake you up but, you know – you weren't having it."

"What is it?"

"See for yourself."

And then Jack's not next to him anymore. Rhys sighs and opens the car door. The first step he takes out of the vehicle, his legs threaten to give way and drop him to the ground. He takes a breath and manages to steady himself before he makes his way around the car toward the trunk. Jack stands in front of it, tapping his foot impatiently.

"C'mon, cupcake," Jack says. "Open it."

It's a painful thought that gets the trunk open, after Rhys has entered the cars subsystems again. He pulls the trunk hood up and holds it there while he looks inside.

"Oh," he says, blinking. "Well, that's helpful."

A roadside repair kit, blankets, and a med kit, as well as a spare tire.

"At least Vasquez had the car stocked, I guess," Rhys sighs, leaning against the edge of the car.

"Should get some of the good drugs from that kit, Rhysie," Jack tells him.

"I need to keep a clear head to find the others."

"You're not gonna help anyone walking around wounded like you are," Jack huffs, rolling his eyes. "Take care of yourself first and then worry about your stupid suicidal missions. Which I still don't agree with, by the way."

Rhys sighs and grabs the med kit.

It's heavier than he thought it be for its size, which is saying a lot because the med kit seems rather large. Of course it's a good med kit, though – Vasquez would certainly splurge on it, the car, and everything that came with it after he stole Rhys's promotion out from under him.

He pries open the med kit, peering inside.

"Ah, yes, that's the stuff, kiddo," Jack laughs. "Just stick those in your arm and you'll sleep for a week!"

Rhys stares at the drugs in the kit, as well as the bandages and tape.

He exhales slowly. Painkillers sound good, but he doesn't have time to waste here. He doesn't have time to be less than 100% right now.

"I'll use it later," he says, tossing the kit aside.

He turns to leave when his metal arm jerks back violently, causing him to stagger back a few steps. He winces, the attachments at his shoulder wrenching painfully, and he sees his cybernetic hand picking up a syringe on its own.

"Jack?" Rhys swallows, attempting to uncurl his fingers, get the hand to drop it. "What are you doing?"

"Doing this for you, pumpkin," Jack sighs.

"What do you mean?"

The arm moves, attempting to stab the syringe into his neck. Rhys brings his flesh hand up to intercept it, growling under his breath as he fights with himself. But his cybernetic hand will always be stronger than his flesh one, and he knows that.

The syringe sinks into his flesh. The plunger depresses.

There's a rush of something through his veins.

He's not aware of falling.

He's barely aware of the cobweb-like arms attempting to catch him.

A voice nearby. Soothing but also somewhat frustrating.

Then darkness, again.

xXx

Jack paces back and forth as he watches Rhys sleep. Well, sleep is a nice word for it, but he's not actually asleep. Instead, he's unconscious thanks to the drugs Jack injected into his body. But it was for the kid's own good! He needs the rest, he needs to heal, and he was in pain. He was no help to anyone, even Jack, when he was in such a state.

He was too stubborn to ask for help. Too stubborn to sit down and take care of himself for a moment, to just wait until he was better before going after the others. Which, fine, yeah, maybe they do need to get the others to get to this vault and the treasure, but that doesn't mean Jack has to like any of this. Because he doesn't. At all.

He hates that he's stuck babysitting a suicidal idiot code monkey who doesn't seem to understand how to give into self-preservation and take care of himself.

He glares at Rhys as the kid sleeps. Rhys doesn't even notice his presence, but that's to be expected with the cocktail in his system. Standard Hyperion issue good quality meds, guaranteed to knock you on your ass and leave you high as a kite and feeling good for hours. Maybe even days. He doesn't expect the kid to sleep that long, of course, and he's going to be furious with Jack when he wakes, but what the fuck else was he supposed to do? The kid won't look after himself so the duty falls to Jack. Who has apparently been demoted from President of Hyperion to lowly code monkey babysitter, which is not okay.

And now he's bored and stuck keeping watch with no real way to wake Rhys should something happen. He can move Rhys's metal arm a bit but that's a far cry from getting his body up and moving.

Huh.

Well, there's a thought.

Can he do that?

Fuck it. He's Handsome goddamn Jack – he can do anything he wants.

And if he wants to take over Rhys's body for a bit while the kid sleeps – then that's just what he's going to do.

He focuses on the metal hand. Manages to get the fingers to flex and curl into a fist. Manages to swing the wrist, jerk the elbow, roll it at the shoulder where it connects with flesh. After that, it's a dead zone. The rest of his body isn't cybernetics like the arm – except for his eye and the port.

The port looks damaged right now. Jack runs a ghostly blue finger across it, feeling a jolt run through him even as Rhys grimaces in his not-sleep.

Huh.

Jack blinks and he is Rhys's port. He is the neural implant. He doesn't have a physical (read: holographic) body anymore, but he's inside of Rhys in a way he hasn't been before. Sure, he can move his arm occasionally if he sets his mind to it – and it's easier now that Rhys has let him further into his subsystems – but that doesn't mean he's ever been like this before. Usually when he's in the code monkey's head, he's dormant. It's a dreamless sort of non-existence which helps pass the time because it's a period of time he doesn't have to be aware of it. He just sort of skips forward a few hours. It's a nice way to ignore the boredom, but it also leaves him feeling off. More ghostly. Like he's not fucking here, and he is.

This whole situation is so frustrating.

But right now is different.

He is in Rhys's head, but it's not the dormant way. He is Rhys. When he wants to move his arm, Rhys's arm moves. He focuses on his left arm – Rhys's flesh one, the one he couldn't control before. It moves the same as the cybernetic one, and just as easily.

Jack feels the laughter bubbling up inside of him.

Rhys laughs. Well, it's Rhys's voice that's laughing, but it's Jack laughing. That's Jack's hand waving in front of him. That's Jack's tongue rolling across his lips – the first real physical sensation he's had in so long.

And it feels fucking great.

He pushes to his feet. Rhys's body is tall and lanky – taller than Jack's own body but not as built. The first few steps he takes, he nearly face-plants after tripping over the back of his own heel and losing balance due to this stupidly lanky frame. How the hell does Rhys walk around on these stilts for legs?

By the time he makes it to the car's driver side door, he thinks he has the hang of walking in Rhys's literal shoes. He's almost giddy, actually – hyped on adrenaline because he's actually walking. Moving. In an actual body instead of that stupid holographic form.

He cracks his knuckles against the steering wheel just to see if he can feel pain. There's a brief spark of ouch, and yes, he can definitely feel that. He grins, laughing again. Why the hell doesn't Rhys ever laugh like this? It sounds great. It feels great. Fuck. Jack should get him to laugh more.

Now that he's in Rhys's body, though – Rhys's pain starts to make itself known to Jack.

He feels the aches and pains all over. Feels that sharp burning sensation near the port. Feels his breath catch in his throat at the pain ebbing through him.

Rhys might have been knocked out on the good meds, but Jack wasn't.

Well. At least the kid's in the car now and not laying outside on the ground. It's mildly safer, and now Jack knows he can do this. He can slip into Rhys's body if need be. It sure beats giving Rhys a headache to try and get his attention.

Slipping out of Rhys's skin is significantly more difficult than it was to slip into it. It's like he's slogging through a thick fog, like his limbs don't want to work. He focuses his attention on disconnecting himself from Rhys – pictures his stupid holographic form, and after a few long minutes of nothing, he flickers into existence in the passenger seat, sufficiently out of the kid's body.

He smirks at the slumped over form. There's an exhaustion burning through him he's getting more familiar with; he needs to recharge. He hates that this is a thing, that he's even aware of it being a thing, but whenever he 'expends his energy' helping Rhys or whatever, he just feels so damn tired. He usually disappears back into Rhys's mind in that non-existent slumber for a while and he's better when he pops back into existence. It's like recharging, like Rhys is his stupid battery.

Jack tries to fight it this time. He's tired, sure, but he can't just leave the kid unconscious in the car like this on his own. No. That might get both of them killed.

So he stays in the passenger seat.

There's a pulling, yanking feeling. He finds himself unconsciously staring at the kid's head, focusing on how he can fit himself snugly into the back of it for a nice, dormant slumber. Tears his gaze away and curls his fingers into the chair beneath him, despite the fact his fingers just slip right through the fabric.

No. He won't give in. He won't let this beat him.

He's Handsome Jack. He doesn't give in.

But as the minutes tick on, he feels weaker. When he looks back over at Rhys, he's closer to the kid now, like he's floating toward him. He glares and puts distance between them again, sitting back down in the passenger seat.

I won't let you win!

There's a pain building behind his eyes. Like his eyes are literally burning. It feels reminiscent of when that vault symbol was burned into his face, blinding him in one eye. It's that same burning pain, and he reaches up to attempt to take off his mask – it's painful, and no one's around to see him right now – but his fingers just slip through the clasps. He can't even touch himself now. And he's too tired to worry about how wrong that sounded.

What the hell is-

He doesn't finish the thought.

Instead, he's yanked back into Rhys's head, into a dark void of nothing.


	11. Storming the Castle

Rhys wakes slowly, like he's rising through a thick fog. His movements are slow and sluggish, limbs weighed down with exhaustion. There's a welcome, floaty feeling his head – like his head weighs nothing and he's just floating above the ground. When he finally pries his heavy eyelids open, he finds himself slumped in the driver's seat of a car, the steering wheel in front of him.

For a brief moment, he wonders how he got there. He has no memory of slipping into the seat. It's hard to tell what his last memory actually was, if he's being honest with himself. It's a big blur, but he thinks he remembers cobwebs somewhere on him. All he really knows is he's in some car with no memory of how he got here. Did he and Vaughn go planet side for a binder? They'd do that occasionally.

He'll have to ask Vaughn what the hell-

Vaughn.

Just like that, it all comes slamming back into. His head throbs sharply, painfully, and for a moment he relives flying off the hood of the car. His fingers go up toward his port, crusted with dried blood. He winces as the prods the tender area, but at least it's not on fire like it was before.

Before.

What happened? Did he pass out driving?

Jack warned him against that.

Jack.

He looks around, but he's alone. He feels alone, like he usually does when Jack is dormant or whatever. He doesn't know what to call it.

Okay, so Jack's not here right now. He has the car to himself, a foggy brain attempting to fit the pieces together to figure out exactly how he got here, and he knows he has to find Vaughn and the girls. Fuck. How long has it been since he passed out? What if Vasquez and August got tired of waiting? What if they're already dead?

No.

He grits his teeth. He can't think like that. If he starts thinking they're all dead, then it's really over and it can't be over. He's been through too much shit these past few days for it to just end like this. He won't let it.

He starts the car and starts moving again. His ECHO-eye helpfully maps a course for him, despite the pain throbbing through his head. He feels incredibly sore, like he does after a long night of drinking with Vaughn. It's akin to a hangover, and he can't tell if it's because of his injuries or because of the meds.

Meds? What meds?

He frowns. Meds. The trunk. Jack.

Jack took control of his arm and forced the meds into his system. He didn't want to take them at the time because they would knock him out and he couldn't afford to lose more time after having already been knocked out for ten hours. Jack apparently disagreed and took control of his arm, again.

Again.

Fuck, this is getting out of control.

It wasn't supposed to be like this, after all. He's supposed to keep Jack at bay. Supposed to keep him from taking over.

But he keeps slipping. Jack keeps taking over his cybernetic arm.

Jack isn't around to yell at right now, though, so Rhys exhales slowly and wills the anger into the back of his mind. He doesn't have time for anger right now. Later, he tells himself. He can be angry and upset later, but right now he needs to focus.

Focusing isn't easy, though, not with the pain in his head and his general confusion thanks to the fog still in his brain. How did he get in the car? He doesn't remember walking to the car. He thought he just feel on the ground, so how is he here?

It's possible he woke briefly after taking the meds and managed to make it back inside the car, probably due to Jack's nagging. It would explain why he doesn't remember it; he would have been high as hell on those meds. It's the only explanation that makes sense.

He drags his flesh hand slowly across his face, sighing heavily.

He has a long drive ahead of him – a good two hours or so, which is time he really doesn't have. He's already wasted so much time and he doesn't even know if the girls and Vaughn are still alive.

On impulse, he activates his cybernetic palm and tries to contact Vaughn, but the signal is blocked. Huh. They must have realized Vaughn got a message out or something. Either that or they just became paranoids about possible messages and tracking devices. But Vaughn said they wanted Rhys. To be more specific, they want what it's in his head.

They want Jack.

And Rhys might let them have Jack. They'll just take him back to Hyperion, where he wants to go anyway, and he'll be out of Rhys's head. He won't have to deal with the hologram trying to take over his body anymore. He won't have to worry about Jack attempting to use his cybernetic arm to hurt the others.

The only downside to this is he knows they'll probably kill him the minute he stops being useful – the minute Jack's out of his head.

Freedom for Jack means death for Rhys.

Thinking about it only makes his head hurt worse. He forces the thoughts away and focuses on driving, pressing the pedal all the way down until his foot is mostly flat, an ache in his ankle from the continued angle.

He's wasted enough time already.

xXx

Vaughn paces anxiously in the room he and the girls have been thrown in. It's small, hot, and suffocating. There's not a lot of room with the three of them in here, and the room is hot – he can't stop sweating. The girls are trying to fan themselves with Fiona's hat, and Vaughn has lost his shirt again to attempt to cool down.

It's been roughly twenty-four hours since they were captured by August and Vasquez. Rhys's idea to divide and conquer worked, to a point, but a wrong turn left them stuck in a dead end with a rocky cliff side blocking their exit, and Vasquez and August boxing them in. Instead of just killing them outright, they sent Vasquez out as a spokesperson.

They were captured instead, and not harmed. They want Rhys, or at least what's in his head. They also want Gortys, but Fiona said that since she is imprinted on both her and Rhys due to the fact they were the first ones to touch the pieces of her core, she can't possibly work right without Rhys. Gortys seemed confused at first, because she is clearly past the point of needing both of them around to be activated, but after a few harsh whispers from Fiona, she readily agreed that she did, in fact, need Rhys before she could continue finding her pieces.

So now they're just waiting for Rhys to show up. Vaughn knows he will, even though he warned Rhys it was most definitely a trap. Rhys won't leave them behind.

Or, at least, he didn't think he would.

It's been twenty-four hours now, though, and Rhys still isn't here. Has he given up on them? Did something happen to him after he ended the call with Vaughn? Did Jack get to him? Vaughn honestly doesn't know, and it's left a tight knot of dread weighing heavily in his stomach.

It's the not knowing that's the worst.

He doesn't know what happened, or if Rhys is even still alive.

For all he knows, he's out there dead somewhere, and soon they'll all be dead too because he never showed up.

Vasquez has threatened them several times, and August has questioned Rhys's loyalty to them. The girls are beginning to doubt he's coming, too. What's worse is Vaughn himself is starting to doubt his friend, and the guilt eats away at his stomach.

Rhys won't leave them hanging. Right?

But then – where is he?

Why isn't he here yet?

How are they going to get out of here, even if Rhys does show up?

He doesn't know. The uncertainty leaves him anxious, a tight ball of nerves, and so he paces.

Back and forth. Back and forth.

Again and again in this small room.

"Would you knock it off?" Fiona finally snaps.

He stops and glares at her. "I'm sorry if my anxiety is inconvenient for you," he mutters back.

Her eyes roll. "You're going to make a trench there if you're not careful."

"Maybe that's not such a bad idea," Sasha says, yawning. "We could dig our way out."

"Through cement floors?" Fiona asks incredulously.

"I never said it'd be easy," Sasha sighs. "But at least it's better than waiting around for Hyperion to show up."

"Rhys will be here," Vaughn says.

"Uh huh," Sasha says doubtfully. "And then what? He magically brainwashes them all into letting us go? What do you think is gonna happen when he gets here? They're gonna capture him too, and kill us all."

Vaughn feels his shoulders slouch in defeat. She's not wrong, exactly. Even with Jack in Rhys's head, Rhys is still only one person made of flesh and blood, despite a few cybernetic enhancements. Those enhancements certainly don't make him invulnerable. Sometimes, Vaughn even argues they make him more vulnerable, such as those long nights trying to help Rhys through a particularly rough migraine, or helping him sort through data when his filtering system is on the fritz due to a new company-mandated update. Sometimes, Hyperion likes to treat their 'enhanced assets' as actual computers, which is wrong on a variety of levels.

Even with those enhancements, Rhys is still only one person and he doesn't see how one person is going to get them out of all this – but he tries to stay hopeful. Rhys always has a plan, he tells himself. There's always a Plan B.

Because if this is it – if there is no Plan B – then this is where they die, and he can't let it end with Rhys still angry with him, killed by their former associates.

xXx

The hours pass in a vague blur. Rhys remembers bits and pieces of the drive, exhaustion weighing through him. There are long stretches of time he doesn't remember, can't recall, but he's been awake this whole time with his foot pressed down on the pedal, all the way to the floor of the car, as far as it will go. A few times his foot has slipped, and he's caught himself slowing down only to shake himself out of his fatigue and re-focus on the road ahead of him.

Why is it so hard to concentrate? Everything feels so foggy, like he's stuck in a place where he's constantly half-asleep. He's tired, sure, but he slept for a long time, didn't he? Or maybe it's just his body's way of coping with the damage done to his port. Sure, he took meds, which should definitely jump-start the healing process – but that doesn't mean it's fixed.

When you're someone whose brain is half cybernetics, health hypos aren't always the go-to answer for everything injury-related. Maybe it's not an injury. Maybe it's a malfunction. Because he's a machine now, isn't he? At least partially. Usually he's okay with it, despite the company-mandated updates which threaten to drive him crazy for days on end as his implants try to reconcile with their own memory banks and what the Hyperion network says. Rhys's memories, his living, breathing memories, vie for dominance over the mechanical. The work-related files. Sometimes there's not enough room in his head for both.

He can't decide if it'd be easier to go fully cybernetic like Jack's enforcer, Wilhelm – or if he should rip out all of the cybernetics entirely. He didn't ask for them, after all. The neural port was vital to fully access his ECHO-eye, but he could have turned down the system updates. He could have said no, after Tassiter was dead.

But at that point he'd begun to rely quite heavily on his cybernetics. At least he wasn't completely a cripple when he had them, and it was nice to see out of both eyes again – even if one wasn't really his. It was nice to have two arms again, and the extra strength the cybernetic limb brought left a tendril of confidence shooting through him, until he looked upon his cybernetic limb with something akin to pride.

That was before Jack died, though. Before things really changed.

Before he got stuck with an AI in his head because of those very implants.

And now health hypos aren't the cure-all they used to be, at least not for him. Now he needs something else.

He needs an engineer. One familiar with cybernetics and the brain.

The real question is how to find one whilst one is stuck on the wastelands of Pandora.

Maybe Jack knows, or used to know, but he's been mysteriously absent for the whole drive thus far. Not even a vague flicker out of the corner of his eye to hint at the hologram's presence. It's somewhat worrisome, and he wonders if his damaged port has left Jack… lost, or something, but thinking about it hurts. Physically. It leaves a sharp pain stabbing through his skull and he forces his attention back to the road.

The road he can't remember driving down half the time.

Which is really a problem, if he's being honest. He doesn't like forgetting stretches of time like that, and he knows he needs help.

But to get help, he has to first give help himself. He has to help the others. He has to save Vaughn.

There's a lot he has to do, and he has no idea how to even start going about doing it. He has the location Vaughn sent him, and he knows August and Vasquez are working together, wanting access to Jack inside Rhys's head. He knows that. It's a known quantity. What's not known is the number of people waiting to cut his head off the second he arrives at said location.

August and Vaughn are just two people, both irritating in their own rights, but he knows they're going to have others backing them up, just like before, at the Atlas Facility. They're going to have weapons, robots, and a single painted target in the center of Rhys's forehead.

Either they want Jack out of him and want to toss Rhys away, or they want both of them dead and just interested in the supposed files Jack was storied onto. Having an AI of this magnitude is bizarre, almost otherworldly, and it's definitely the type of technology people would kill for.

Have killed for.

So, what am I gonna do?

He has absolutely no idea. No idea how this is supposed to all work out in their favor.

He's just going to have to wing it.

Wing it, and hope Jack might be conniving enough to get them both out of this mess alive.

The thought leaves him scowling. That's a quick way to die if he's ever heard one. Jack's a hologram – he's not solid or anything, so he can't do anything to physically help Rhys, can he? Except enhance his cybernetics.

Wait a minute…

A slow grin spreads across his face. The fog in his brain clears somewhat as thoughts begin to connect together, a plan finally forming.

xXx

When Jack snaps back into existence, it's sudden and jarring. He's flung into form sitting in the passenger seat of the stolen car, and if he had a heart in his chest right now, it'd be trying to rip its way out. What the hell was that? He takes a moment to catch his non-existent breath and looks sideways at Rhys, who is tossing him curious glances every few seconds.

"What? Miss me?" Jack asks, smirking.

Rhys shrugs. "Actually, yeah."

Jack pauses, frowning at him. "Wait, what?"

This isn't how their 'banter' usually goes. It starts with Jack annoying the hell out of Rhys and ends with Rhys getting frustrated and giving into whatever Jack says. That's how it's supposed to go.

"I have a plan," Rhys says, grip tightening on the steering wheel.

"Uh huh," Jack says, eyeing him suspiciously. "I'm not a big fan of your 'plans', kid. They tend to be idiotic and suicidal."

"Sometimes," Rhys says. "But you could help diminish the threat, couldn't you?"

"I'm not a miracle worker, babe."

"No, but you are an AI."

Jack's eyes narrow. "Watch it, kid. Keep in mind who you're talking to."

"Exactly!" Rhys says, like that was his point all along, leaving Jack utterly confused. "You're Handsome goddamn Jack, President of Hyperion, and who are we about to infiltrate? That's right! A Hyperion base!"

Rhys's sudden enthusiasm is really harshing out Jack's own energy. He feels coiled and tight, ready to spring into action because Rhys is enthusiastic about it, and he hates this.

Nevertheless… Jack can see why the kid would be excited.

"Ah, I see," he says, smirking. "You know, Rhysie, you're thinking more like me every day!" Which is mildly off-putting, if he's being honest. How is he supposed to entertain himself if the kid is like talking to a mirror? Not that he'd super mind it, of course, because he is awesome and why wouldn't he want to speak to himself? Still, though… it doesn't seem like Rhys.

Maybe he bled more into Rhys when he took over his body for a bit. It's a thought. Not exactly worrisome, but not idle either.

Rhys blinks at him. "Uh, thanks?"

"We're going to bring them to their knees," Jack says, picturing the upcoming attack now. "Cripple their defenses, hack their 'superior universal remote', upgrade baby bot and kick their collective asses!"

He's actually getting hyped for the fight, just like always. Jack loves a good fight. He loves getting his hands dirty. There are some who call him a coward who would never face someone head-on, but that's a bold-faced lie. He started from the bottom and killed his way up the corporate ladder, which he assumes even Rhys can relate to. It's just how it is at Hyperion. It's not even how Jack made it, it's how it was before he even came along and he just beat the system. No guts, no glory.

But he likes fighting. And just before a big fight, usually physical in nature because crushing someone's windpipe with his bare hands is actually quite exhilarating, he gets this huge burst of adrenaline, amping him for said fight. His lungs expand, his lizard brain activates, and he cracks his knuckles, readying himself.

This time isn't physical, at least not on his part. It'll be digital, electrical, robotic. And somehow that's still okay, because damn if he's not the best AI to ever exist because he can do this. He can win this. He can help Rhys this way.

He's not sure when helping Rhys became super high up on his to-do-list, but for some reason it is. It is, his mind argues, a surefire way to get Rhys on his side, and he needs this siren on his side for the war to come. It also happens to keep himself alive, in Rhys's head, so it's a win-win, really. Helping Rhys helps him get what he wants, and he's all for that.

He'll need to charge up for the fight though, which is just, ugh, so distracting. Why is this a thing? He does feel better after being yanked back inside Rhys's head, but he'll stubborn hold a grudge against that very idea because no, Handsome Jack doesn't need to recharge like some dead battery, thank you very much. He's his own person. A holographic person right now, but that is temporary, and he doesn't appreciate being constantly reminded that he is less than, because he's not.

Still. Better to charge up for the fight so he doesn't get yanked back into Rhys's head at an inopportune moment. Even he can think ahead and realize this might be a problem.

So despite his grudge and annoyance, he slips back inside Rhys's head to recharge anyway – because at least now he knows why it sometimes feels like a great idea to be dormant for a while.

It doesn't make him less than.

It just makes him stronger.

xXx

They arrive at the desired location soon enough. Rhys is sore from the cramped space during the drive, and once-again curses his long legs. He stretches as he exits, exhausted but also filled with pre-fight adrenaline. He could die here. They could all die here. He has to stop it. He can't fail them, not now.

"Jack?" he calls quietly, spinning in a slow circle to search for the blue outline.

Jack sparks to life next to him, stretching and yawning as well. "I was having the nicest dream, kiddo," he says.

Rhys exhales slowly, jittery with nerves. His lizard-brain is going haywire. "Are you ready for this?"

"Oh, cupcake," Jack laughs, "I was born ready. Let's do this."

Rhys's enhanced ECHO-eye activates, scanning the building as a whole. It's a Hyperion-based building with standard issue Hyperion defenses. It makes sense Vasquez would take them here, injured after the Atlas Facility. The facility would be stocked with meds, food, and supplies, not to mention vehicles, which would explain where they got them during the car chase. So August is really interested in helping Vasquez, though Rhys can't determine why. What's he get out of it? He seemed like a normal bandit. Then again, he surmises, so did Fiona and Sasha when he first met them, and they're… not. Not normal bandits, anyway.

Everyone on Pandora has their own personalities, their own lives and backstories. Clumping them all together under the term of 'bandit' just feels wrong. Just like the Pandorans clumping all of Hyperion together under the label 'Hyperion' feels wrong. Rhys isn't a corporation – he is a prong on the ladder, one person in a sea of people, and lumping him together with the likes of Vasquez just makes him feel dirty.

He wants to believe he's not nearly as bad as Vasquez. That he wouldn't murder his boss to steal a promotion. That he wouldn't be a pompous dick about everything.

But, hell. Maybe he is exactly like Vasquez. Here he is, plotting… murder.

Because that's what's going to happen here.

A lot of death.

Just like before. Just like always.

It's somehow become the norm, and while death happens on Helios a lot, it never felt as pronounced as it does now. Is he used to corporate murder but not the normal kill-or-be-killed king? What kind of monster is he?

What kind of monster does Hyperion make you?

He shakes the thoughts away. All disturbing, and all for another day. Today he has to focus.

It's a Hyperion layout. Hyperion weapons.

And he has the superior override code to everything – even the universal remote.

Because he has the President of Hyperion on his side, and if people thought Handsome Jack didn't install a few fail-safes just for himself in case his primary system was hacked or betrayed – then they didn't know Jack at all.

"Alright, Jack," Rhys breathes, stepping toward the building. "Hack the weapons and the cameras."

Suddenly Rhys is everywhere. It's jarring on a whole new level, and takes a few seconds to adjust to. He's in the building, in all the hallways, guarding all the exits, keeping an eye on the prisoners. He focuses on that camera. Vaughn, Fiona, and Sasha are in a room at the bottom of the base, underground, with low lighting. At least their alive.

Vasquez is pacing back and forth with his stubby shoulder bandaged. Rhys can't bring himself to regret shooting his arm off, at least not right now – right now he's angry, because Vasquez looks distinctly impatient and he just keeps coming after them, time and time again, even without an arm. It occurs to Rhys than in trying to screw over Vasquez, he might have ruined the man's life. Definitely ruined his life. Altered it. Especially now with the arm gone. He's forced Vasquez into siding with bandits, his previously sworn enemy, just to apprehend/kill Rhys and his friends.

A part of Rhys must have known, from the beginning, that this would happen. That he'd ruin Vasquez. Hell, maybe a part of him even wanted it.

But it wasn't his primary goal in trying to steal Vasquez's deal.

He just wanted to come out on top for once. To screw Vasquez over instead of the other way around. He worked hard for that promotion, screwed other people over, went through Hyperion's 'proper' (read: disturbing) channels, and still lost anyway. All because Vasquez went and introduced their boss to the wrong side of an airlock. It was stolen out from under him, and he wanted to steal the vault key from under Vasquez.

And in the process, not only ruined Vasquez's life, but Vaughn's too. And his own. And who knows what's happened to Yvette alone up there. He'll never forgive himself if she's hurt, or worse, because of his mistakes.

Just thinking about it makes him angry. With a small thought, the turrets activate on a room of armed guards.

They hear the whirring of the guns shifting to aim at them. They spin, confused, to face them. They're all bandits, despite the Hyperion facility, one of the few remaining in good condition down here on Pandora after Jack's fall. There's only one Hyperion employee among the group, and that's Vasquez, and he's currently being watched by August away from the consoles for the turrets.

They're only confused for a few short seconds. After that, they're a bloody mess on the ground, but Rhys doesn't feel sympathy. Not right now. He's just angry.

He's aware of his physical body moving forward, his flesh eye seeing the path before him. He lifts his robotic hand, curls his fingers in to a fist, and the Hyperion doors jerk open. He can feel Jack empowering him even as the former CEO walks behind him, laughing all the while, just like at the Atlas Facility.

And, just like then, it feels good. He likes this. He likes being this powerful. He likes killing people with a thought. He likes getting back at Vasquez. People will learn not to mess with him, to quit stealing shit from under him.

Or maybe they won't, because they'll be dead.

He's too angry to truly care about that right now. Just empowered with a rage burning through him, and on some level he realizes this is wrong – but he's too gone to care.

He's in the facility, walking down the halls like he own's the place. Because right now, he does.

He is Handsome Jack. Handsome Jack is Rhys. They blur together.

They're both of them, and everywhere. They're neither of them, and nowhere.

It's disorientating on a whole new level. He doesn't remember grabbing his stun baton, but he must have at some point because there's an electrical flare around him which sends the approaching guards out of his way. They had their weapons raised but didn't fire – they just stared at him as they walked forward, which is really odd, but he can't focus on it right now. They're out of his way.

He continues down the hall.

In another room, Vasquez and August have apparently heard the gunfire. They're now running through the hallways with Vasquez lagging behind. August has Vasquez's shotgun in his hands, and Vasquez has a pistol in his singular hand. They're coming at him from the right, like they know he's there, but Rhys knows for a fact they're running blind because he is in control of the cameras right now.

They quickly hop back around a corner when a well-placed ceiling turret turns to fire at them. August yells something at Vasquez, who looks distinctly pale. He's fumbling with his pistol, trying to hold onto it and reach for the universal remote with one only one hand. He drops the pistol, yanks out the remote, and-

"Ah, ah, ah," Jack says, smirk evident in his voice. "You didn't think you were gonna make it out of here alive, did ya?"

Vasquez presses the button. Again and again and again. Stabbing his index finger into it, smashing it with his entire palm, anything to get it to work.

It doesn't.

Rhys can't help but laugh himself.

He knows where they are. He could go after them.

"Yes, do it, Rhysie," Jack says, almost giddily, like he's also energized by the fight. "Kill them all!"

The thought is very tempting. He might have done it if he didn't see movement outside the room Vaughn and the girls are in.

The anger re-ignites inside of him.

They're being taking from the room at gunpoint, by several armed guards.

He fires a few warning shots from a nearby turret after activating it, but he doesn't intend to hit the target. The shots might hit the others.

"Uh, why are you playing with kiddie gloves there, pumpkin?" Jack asks, irritated. "I give you all the power and your throw your punches, are you kidding me?"

"Can't kill them," he says, and it takes an effort to use his actual voice. He realizes, belatedly, he hasn't needed to do that since he stepped into the facility. But somehow Jack hears his thoughts.

Huh.

That's… new.

And worrisome. But also a thought for later because right now-

Four armed guards come around the corner ahead of him. They seem shocked to see him, having been running blind. They're lucky, actually. No turrets around this particular intersection – a bad call on Hyperion's part, he's sure – but he's not completely useless, either.

They hesitate before firing, staring at him like the ones before him. He's not sure what they seem quite so fascinated by, but he's already raising his hand.

His stun-baton-less hand.

His hand is empty. Before this thought can process, instinct dictates that he open his palm.

An electrical nova forms around him. Little electrical burts shoot forward to zap the guards, who are stunned enough to fumble their weapons. As they're trying to re-orientate themselves, Rhys steps forward on auto-pilot.

They stare up at him in horror.

Then they promptly turn and run down a different hallway.

A bad call on their part. The turret fire is loud and echoing in the hallways, and he watches from the cameras as their bodies hit the ground.

He takes a right. Finds the stairs.

Little blind spots are popping up in his vision.

Vasquez and August, poking his eyes out.

Shit.

Vaughn and the others are nearby. He just has to get to them. The guards are holding them hostage, yelling at a camera – but the cameras don't have sound. So that doesn't really help him.

He can hear distant echoes, though, so he's definitely getting closer.

"Uh, Rhysie," Jack says. "Not to burst your bubble here, pumpkin, but uh, losing energy here, kiddo. And you're glowing like a freaking flashlight so could you just tone it down a bit there, babe."

Rhys blinks, the fog in his brain clearing slightly. "What?" He turns to face Jack.

Jack's flickering in and out like before. Low on energy, he said. Is Rhys his battery or something? Is that a thing? Does he need to recharge?

The second half of Jack's statement catches up to him. "What do you mean, glow-"

He sees himself on camera, focusing on this singular hallway for the first time.

He's glowing. Even though his clothes, it's visible. The side of his neck is bright, and his left hand is-

He brings his flesh hand up. It, too, is covered in spiraling marks similar to his left side and neck. What. The. Hell?

Panic claws inside of him, vying for dominance. He's allowed to freak out, right? He has weird, glowing, growing tattoos. He's allowed to panic.

"Calm down, Rhysie," Jack says, almost soothingly. "I feel for ya, kiddo, I really do, but you gotta tone it down, okay? Trust me, you do not want everyone else seeing you like this. Remember out little agreement? No one sees this but me? So just calm down."

But he can't calm down. He can't calm down because he's glowing, his eyes are glowing, and he just attacked someone without his weapon.

He shocked people without his stun-baton. And they ran from him in fear. In horror.

Cobwebs, on his shoulders. Jack's hands slide through him, but the flickering gaze is grounding in a way little else is, when Jack is all that's in his field of vision. "Rhys. Rhys, you need to calm down. We'll talk about this later, but right now I need you to just chill out. Take a deep breath. That's it – in, out. In, out. Breathe with me, kiddo."

Rhys follows Jack's instructions, Jack breathing in time with him until he feels decidedly more steady on his own two feet. His heart isn't racing as much, fit to burst out of his chest.

"How… how did you know to do that?" he asks shakily.

"My daughter got similar panic attacks," Jack says, a tightness to his face. Which is really saying something, considering he has a mask on his face.

"Your daught-"

"Not now, cupcake." A ghostly hand pats his cheek. He ducks away from the touch. "Talk later, fight now. I'm tired, so I'm gonna, ya know, recharge or whatever." He sound slightly bitter about the whole thing, but Rhys can't blame him.

He can't think about much of anything right now, except that Handsome Jack helped him through a panic attack.

He vaguely knew of Jack's daughter existence in the general sense as everyone else – that it was probably just a myth, but some said he had one. A rumor, nothing more.

Apparently, Jack did have a daughter. Does have a daughter. Fuck. That's not a conversation he's looking forward to having with said daughter.

"Save your useless friends," Jack says sourly. "Ugh, those assholes. I'd leave them behind if I were you, Rhysie, but you need them for the vault so just – go be a hero."

Rhys smiles faintly. "Get some rest, Jack."

"Ugh, don't say it like that," Jack says, scowling, before he slips into Rhys's head.

Rhys looks at himself on cameras again. The glow has faded from his eyes and skin.

Okay. Deep breaths. Calm breaths. Just stay calm and you've got this.

Right. Calm.

He continues down the hallway. He's still in the Hyperion system thanks to Jack's ice-breaker, but watching all the cameras and controlling all the turrets like before is too disorientating now, without Jack's help bracing himself against the onslaught. He focuses on the cameras watching Vaughn and the others, and their armed guards, and keeps a hold on that turret that hasn't fired since the warning shots, and makes his way for them.

He just needs to hold it together a little longer.

He rounds the corner at a casual stroll, stepping into eyesight of the armed guards and the others. They're all staring at him, but he knows he's not glowing right now.

"Hey, guys," he says, grinning. "I think we'll be going now."


	12. Like Jack

"Rhys, are you doing this?" Vaughn asks shakily, staring at him.

Rhys brushes away the ache that Vaughn's mistrust brings. He must think Jack is controlling him, but he's not. He can't deal with that hurt and anger right now – he needs to stay in control. He can't lose it with these people.

"You underestimated my hacking prowess," he says.

"How are you doing this?" one of the guards asks. "Vasquez said he had it on lockdown!"

"Let's just say I got an ice-breaker for your little program," Rhys replies, shrugging. The turret heats up, cylinders spinning, ready to fire. "Now. I said we'll be going. There's been enough bloodshed so I'm willing to let you live if you just hand my friends over and let us walk about of here safe and sound. What do you say?"

The guards share looks. One of them speaks up. "Our orders are to keep them from you."

"Orders?" Rhys makes a show of looking around. "That's funny, 'cause I don't see your boss standing here with you. Seems like he decided you could be turret bait while they escaped. Unfortunate for you, of course."

An awkwardly long silence, combined with more shared looks. They're worried, he knows. He's edging them toward doing what he wants. Hyperion guards might stand there all day under threat of death and Handsome Jack's rage – but these are bandits. They fight to survive to the next day, and get paid, if Pandora has taught him anything.

The front guard raises his weapon. The others slowly do the same, aiming at Rhys.

"We kill you, we win," the front guard says.

"Maybe," Rhys says. "But how quickly can you pull the trigger? Because with a thought, I can activate these turrets, and all of the ones in the entire building. I can put this building on true lockdown mode, and you'll never get out even if I'm dead. Of course, that's if you escape this turret." He cycles the cylinders again. "It's got an increased rate of fire, did you know that? You shouldn't feel it when they rip through you because you'll already be dead. It's actually a small mercy."

Everyone, absolutely everyone, is quiet. Everyone – everyone – is staring at him in horror.

Keep it cool, Rhys. Just a little longer. Just keep calm a little longer, it's okay, you've got this.

He exhales slowly, and grins widely. "So, what's it gonna be? Let us live and leave, and we can all go our separate ways. Or we all die here and now."

"You wouldn't kill your friends," the front guard says, but his voice is shaky, uncertain. "You stopped firing the second they were put in danger."

Rhys laughs – a bitter, shaky sound. "Friends? You think they're my friends?" He casts a dispassionate look at his 'friends', who are still staring at him in open-mouthed horror. "They're not my friends. Every single one of them has left me to die for their own benefit." He looks at Vaughn. "That one there tried to sell me out to your boss's friend just to save his own skin – and that's after being best friends for years! Friendship isn't a thing on Hyperion, or haven't you heard? We're all psychopathic murderers up there. And these two?" He looks at Fiona and Sasha. "They left me behind to die in the desert heat, for days. I don't think a single one of them would care if I died, so really, what friends do you think they are to me?"

Another long, drawn out silence.

"Rhys," Vaughn says quietly. "You can't seriously think-"

"Hush now," Rhys says, shooting him a quick glare. "Hyperion is talking, little accountant." He focuses again on the bandits. "You know," he says, shooting off a few warning shots near the bandits' feet which makes everyone jump, "I'm getting kinda impatient. I've offered you an out – I suggest you take it, before I rescind my offer."

"If you're not here to save these people then why are you here?" another guard asks, speaking up for the first time.

Rhys smiles, nodding encouragingly. "An excellent question! I'm glad you asked. I really only need this one," he points at Fiona, "but I'll take them all. I can't cook for shit, after all, and this one is pretty great at that." He points at Sasha. "And this one," he points at Vaughn, "is good at stealing Hyperion money that won't be missed and giving it to me, so, you know, it's a win-win all around if I have them all for the low, low price of all your lives." He laughs, in a fashion similar to Jack. "You'd be idiots to turn me down, but then, you Pandorans are all idiots, aren't you?"

"Wow," Sasha says, staring at him, "you really are just like Jack."

It hurts, but he has to roll with it for now. He can explain things later but for now – now he has to do this.

"Time's up, kiddos," Rhys says, because if he's going to be accused of being 'just like Jack', he should probably make it count. "Or I blow all your asses into meaty little bits I can feed to skags. So what's it gonna be, cupcake?"

Another long silence. Then the bandits drop their guns, one by one, and slowly back away with their hands raised.

"Nice choice," Rhys congratulates them. "Maybe you Pandorans aren't so stupid after all."

"You'll let us go now, right?" one of them asks.

"Sure," Rhys says, nodding. "As soon as you get in that room."

He points at the room Vaughn and the others were previously locked in.

"As a fail-safe, you know," Rhys adds. "Can't have you changing your mind last second, now can we?"

They share looks again.

"Oh, please," Rhys breathes, grinning as he stalks forward, random turret shots firing at the ground. "Try my patience. I'm begging you. Let's do this the hard way."

They back into the room. He steps into the doorway, grins at them all, and promptly shuts and locks the door.

"Your buddies will be by to get you once we're out of here," he calls through the door before turning back to face the others.

They're still staring at him.

"Oh, good," he breathes, losing the facade and letting his exhaustion shine through as his shoulders slump. "That worked. You're okay. I'm gonna… say hello to the ground now."

He promptly falls forward, right on his face.

There's movement around him. A hand gently touches his shoulder. "Rhys?" Vaughn asks quietly. "Is that, uh… Are you okay?"

"Everything aches," Rhys mutters. "I hate this planet. This planet hurts me. Emotionally and physically. Can we go now?"

"Uh, can you get up?" Fiona asks from somewhere in front of him.

He shoves his hands under him and lifts until he's on his knees. His vision blurs in and out, his ECHO-eye dark.

Everything hurts. His head is searing.

Talk about overextending yourself.

"Remind me to never, ever, do that again," he manages to breathe, blinking heavily.

"You, uh… had us worried for a minute," Fiona says, crouching in front of him.

"You sounded a lot like Jack," Sasha says quietly, crouching on his other side. "I get that it was an act, but-"

Relief floods through him. "Oh, good," he says, hanging his head low. "You knew it was an act."

"Well, of course it was," Fiona says. "You were obviously saying whatever you could to get us out of there. I mean, Vaughn wouldn't betray you. Clearly it was a lie."

Rhys stiffens. Vaughn jerks his hand away from him.

There's an awkward silence.

"Wait," Sasha says. "Wait. You mean…?"

"You tried to sell Rhys out?" Fiona asks incredulously.

Rhys lifts his head. Both of the girls are glaring at Vaughn now.

"Are you kidding me?" Sasha asks, shaking her head. "That guy offered Rhys a deal – to turn you in and get his old job back, his old life back, get the bounty off his own head and be hailed a hero for turning in the traitor known as Vaughn… but he didn't do it! He said no! Are you kidding me? You said yes?"

This is not what Rhys was expecting at all. What the hell? Since when do they give a crap about him? Why are they ganging up on Vaughn?

"You'd sell us out too, wouldn't you?" Fiona asks sharply. "Just like Felix!"

Oh. So that's why. It's personal for them, and they're watching their own asses. It all makes sense again.

"Uh, guys…" he tries.

"It wasn't like that!" Vaughn says, eyes wide. "I wasn't actually going to betray him, I was just saying whatever Vasquez wanted to hear to get him off our backs for a while!"

"Uh huh," Sasha says skeptically. "And when did he offer you this deal? Because he offered it to Rhys in the middle of the whole death race fiasco, and Rhys said no even before the moonshots and Vasquez pursuing us to the Atlas Facility. Before he even became a problem. So when did he offer you the deal, and you said yes?"

There's a long, awkward silence.

Now really isn't the time for this, but Rhys can't bring himself to stop the conversation. Not now. Not when he wants that very answer. Not when it's been eating away at him.

"When, Vaughn?" he asks quietly, causing Vaughn to look at him.

Vaughn swallows thickly. "What does it matter? It's a choice I'll regret for the rest of my life, and I never intended for it to go this far. I just wanted to give us breathing room. I knew you'd come up with a plan to get us out of there, Rhys. You always do. I just had to buy us time. I never wanted to betray you."

"But you did," Rhys mutters, looking away. You did betray me.

Vaughn's avoiding the question.

When did Vasquez offer him the deal? Before or after Vasquez himself became a real problem? Because that suddenly matters a lot.

If it was after the moonshots, when they were stuck stranded in the desert, then maybe he can forgive Vaughn. At that point, self-preservation would have truly kicked in because they were in dire straits. If it was before that, during the death race, then… then Vaughn did things the Hyperion way.

He sold Rhys out to rise through the ranks.

Because Rhys really is just a prong on the corporate ladder.

There's hurt, anger, and panic unfurling in his chest all at once. It's hard to breathe.

His vision blurs.

"Rhys?" Fiona asks, and then her hand is on his shoulder. "You got really pale. Is that blood on your face?"

Now everyone is looking at him.

He swallows, taking calm, deep breaths. "Damaged my port," he says. "Gonna need to fix that soon, but… well… right now isn't really an option."

"Damaged your port?" Vaughn asks, sliding forward again despite the accusatory eyes on him. "How did you hack everything with it damaged? How are you even moving around? You've got to be in excruciating pain."

"It's… pretty bad," Rhys admits, eyes closing.

"Then let's get you out of here," Sasha says, slipping one of his arms around her shoulders. Fiona slips onto the other side, easily nudging Vaughn out of the way, to take his other arm, and suddenly he's being lifted.

The ascension is disorientating. It takes several seconds and several long blinks to be able to refocus his vision. Having sight only out of one eye is also frustrating.

Not to mention painful because even the dim lighting around him is painful.

"Shouldn't I be getting you out of here?" Rhys asks.

"You opened the door for us," Fiona says. "Now we're repaying the favor."

"Is there, uh… anything we need to worry about nearby?" Sasha asks.

"Sight's dead," Rhys says, eyes falling shut. "As far as I know, the path is clear, but Vasquez and August might still be a problem."

"We'll deal with them," Sasha says darkly.

"Without weapons?" Vaughn asks.

"I think Rhys has proven how deadly your mind can be," Fiona retorts. "We'll think of something. We always do."

The stairs are a pain in the ass. Rhys has to actually put effort into walking up them, since he's so tall and lanky and the girls are struggling under the added weight of his robotic arm. It's a long, slow process – at least in his mind, but in reality it takes maybe a minute.

They continue making their ways through the hallways. At this point, Rhys's mind going dark, his body moving on sluggish auto-pilot, and he starts to let himself drift off.

He's jerked back into awareness when they come to a sudden stop, the movements jarring as his head hangs low, shooting pain spiking through his skull. He drags his heavy head up and pries reluctant eyelids open to find August and Vasquez in front of them. Vasquez has lost his pistol and is looking distinctly pale, his stubby shoulder bleeding again, red staining the bandages. August stands in front of them with the Hyperion shotgun out and ready.

"I don't know how you got in here like you did or what you did to all my men," August says slowly, glaring at him in particular, "but you're gonna regret the day you crossed me."

Oh, for crying out-

The pain as he activates his ECHO-eye is sharp enough to leave him yelping as his legs give way. He's dragged downward, the girls' hold on him faltering, as he causes the gun to continuously backfire. It's a new and improved Hyperion model shotgun, after all – top of the line, with many added benefits.

Just a lot of pitfalls when it comes to someone like Rhys with Jack's ice-breaker.

He is the universal remote.

The girls lift him up again and quickly drag him past Vasquez and August, who are attempting to not get shot by their own gun.

There's a darkness calling Rhys's name. It's soothing, and welcoming, and so very tempting.

Not yet, he tells himself. He can pass out later, but right now… right now he has to make sure they all get out of here.

"Where… are the bots?" he manages to push through reluctant lips.

"Locked in the caravan, under guard out back," Fiona says. "Uh… did you not see them?"

"Came in the front door," Rhys tells them.

"You just… walked in?" Sasha asks.

"Seemed like a good idea at the time."

"Did no one try to stop you?"

"Uh… they failed."

"How?" Fiona asks.

"My stun-baton," he replies.

"What can it do against guns?" Vaughn asks.

None of them have seen his stun-baton in action, when he's using it. Not really.

"I hacked turrets and cameras too," Rhys mutters, groaning. "What's it matter? Can we go now?"

"We're going," Fiona replies.

More sluggish movements. A drowsiness pumping through him, chasing away the previous adrenaline. The power from Jack is gone – like a lingering ache somewhere inside of him. He actually misses him. Misses that power.

It's concerning.

He hangs his head low, floating in and out of awareness as he's all but dragged along.

"Uh… Rhys?"

He registers his name, but not who said it. Just that it's said again and again, and someone is lightly shaking him. "Hmm?" he manages, to get them to stop.

"Rhys? We need this door open. Come on, it's the last door, I promise," Fiona coaches soothingly.

Rhys pries his eyes open again. Looks at the door blocking the way.

One more door. He can do this.

Just one more time.

Then he can sleep. Let them deal with the guards.

He raises his hand. Belatedly, he realizes it's his flesh hand and not his cybernetic one, but the door is already opening. Fire rolls through his head like a tidal wave of pain and misery, and with that last spark of awareness, he collapses.

Darkness consumes everything.

xXx

Rhys dreams of home.

Of his apartment. Sitting on the couch with Vaughn having game marathons.

Yvette, arriving late with pizza and a small apology for adding it to Rhys's tab.

Yvette, using his money to buy the group lunch.

All three of them on their shared camping trip to Pandora. Laughing around a campfire and roasting marshmallows.

He dreams of home, and he dreams of hurt.

Of longing and want combining with betrayal and anger.

Vaughn, selling him out to Vasquez. He relives the hurt in that moment.

Yvette, denying them supplies.

Yvette, telling them she's tracking them and will send what she can.

Vasquez, arriving in his car at the exact location Rhys and Vaughn stand.

He dreams of a deep burning rage.

Everything is electric blue.

xXx

"How long's he been out?"

"What do we do?"

"How do we help him?"

There's a flurry of voices around him, all combining with each other into one annoying entity. Rhys tries to drown them out and slip back into that inky darkness, but he can't. They're nearby, rushed and loud, and the bed beneath him is moving.

Wait, bed?

The fingers on his flesh hand curl instinctively into the cushions beneath him. Belatedly, he realizes he must, in fact, be on the couch in the caravan. They're driving.

A fight. He vaguely remembers a frantic rush of adrenaline, panicking, Jack soothing him, and-

No. Now he knows he's crazy.

Jack did not help him through a panic attack. No. That didn't happen.

He must have hallucinated that part. Why was he panicking, anyway?

His mind searches for the answer but it's like his thoughts are slogging through mossy waters. It's a slow walk, a slippery slope into more pain. It's the sudden spark of pain near his port that leaves his eyes finally flying open.

That's when he sees Jack. Crouching next to him, face hovering over him, hand pulling back from his head.

"Jack?" Rhys whispers, frowning.

Jack grins. "There you are, kiddo. Was wondering when you'd finally decide to wake up. These idiots have been arguing for twenty minutes now and it's driving me crazy. Could ya do something about that, pumpkin?"

Rhys rolls his head slightly, twisting enough to see Vaughn and Fiona near the back of the caravan. He looks around and finds Sasha driving, but the robots are nowhere in sight. They made it to the caravan, though, which he vaguely remembers being mildly problematic. They must be on the roof like before; it's the only way they'll all fit.

No one seems to have noticed the fact he's awake. Maybe that's a good thing. He'd hate to have to try to explain why he said 'Jack'.

Why does it feel like I have a killer hangover?

"Did I get drunk?" he asks, loud enough to catch everyone's attention finally.

Fiona and Vaughn stop talking, both looking over at him. Then they share a brief look before quickly approaching him, crouching down in Jack's personal space. Jack flickers out of existence and reappears at Rhys's feet, sitting on the end of the couch with his arms folded across his chest as he scowls at the others.

"About time," Jack says.

"Are you okay?" Vaughn asks.

"How do you feel?" Fiona adds.

"Are you dying?" Sasha throws from the driver's seat.

"Uh…" Rhys says, because he is intelligent like that. "I feel like we went on a massive bender last night, and my head hurts. Dying is a relative term, so… could you be more precise?"

They stare at him for a moment.

"He's fine," Fiona says.

"You've been out for thirteen hours," Vaughn tells him worriedly.

Ugh, again? Just sleeping my life away here, apparently.

"I was tired," is all he says on the matter.

"We saw that," Fiona says dryly. "You just went to sleep in the middle of a doorway. Left us to carry you and fight to get the caravan back."

Rhys makes a show of looking around. "Well. It looks like you won, so…"

"I thought you said you had your stun-baton?" Vaughn asks.

It's a random question. There's no possible way Rhys can remember everything that happened prior to him blacking out, so he just stares blankly at Vaughn. "Did I?"

"It's dead," Fiona says, sighing. "I guess even Hyperion tech needs to recharge once in a while."

"Dead?" Rhys repeats, frowning. He didn't even know it needed to charge. It never showed a battery life or seemed to be dying.

"We tried to use it when we, uh… got the caravan back," Vaughn says uneasily. "But it didn't work."

"Oh," Rhys says blandly. "Must have drained the battery. Whoops."

They frown at him for a moment.

"What?" he asks. "It's been a while since it was charged on Hyperion. I'm surprised it lasted this long. Not to mention, it was a bit of a fight to get to you guys, you know."

All very adequate statements, in his opinion. None of them lies. Good. Maybe he can do this whole 'deceiving' thing after all. Not that he really wants to, because he doesn't, but at the same time… he's panicked about his weird new powers and glowing tattoos, and he can't handle their own interest/worry on top of it. Maybe Jack is right. He really can't let them know about this – at least not until he himself knows, too.

A part of him distantly makes the odd connection that the tattoos remind him vaguely of siren tattoos – sprawling across one side of the body, down the neck, torso, arms and legs. All on the left side. Just like his.

It's a nagging though, but he can't look there right now. No. He has to stay focused on the here and now. Panicking won't help.

He smiles. "So, what'd I miss?" he asks.

"We got the caravan back, obviously," Fiona says, shrugging. "The robots helped. That little, uh… little flying bot wouldn't leave you alone and it was in our way when we tried to help you so we, uh…"

"Banished him to the top with Loader Bot and Gortys," Vaughn finishes, almost sheepishly.

Now that he mentions it, there is something nagging at Rhys's mind – something other than the fact that he has strange glowing tattoos. It's a small alert, just noticeable at the edge of his ECHO-eye vision, unseen until now. He access the blinking file and winces at the sudden flood of information which enters his system.

A lot of little emoticons. Question marks. Exclamations.

So many.

He has to shut the file down to keep his sanity as he swallows back the sudden nausea.

"Wow," he says. "Um. Okay."

I'm okay! He sends BB's way, hoping the little bot gets the message. I'm okay, stop message spamming me!

Wow. Little bot was really worried, huh? That's… touching.

It really is.

"Where are we?" he asks, mostly to distract himself from BB's happy emoticon responses.

"The middle of nowhere right now," Fiona admits. "We just picked a direction and drove off. Have to make sure we're not followed. I don't know how they keep finding us."

And then it all hits Rhys like a train. His dream. The pieces he connected in his sleep, little bits of information his conscious mind refused to connect because the thought hurts.

"It's me," he says, sighing. "They're tracking me."

"How?" Vaughn asks.

"It's Yvette," Rhys says, for the first time aloud. "I let her into my system to track us when we came down here, and she's been tracking our location every since and reporting it to Vasquez."

"What?" Vaughn all but squeaks, which is really undignified of him. "Yvette? Yvette? You can't be serious!"

"Who's Yvette?" Fiona demands.

"Are you kidding me, Rhysie?" Jack is muttering across the caravan, hands thrown into the air in frustration. "Another 'friend' who betrayed you? This is why you can't have friends! They'll only stab you in the back! I freaking told you!"

Well. He's gearing up for a lecture. Great.

Rhys focuses on Fiona and Vaughn as he finally sits up. The world tilts nauseatingly for a moment before he finds his proper balance. "It's the only thing that makes sense."

"Who's Yvette?" Fiona asks again.

"She's our best friend," Vaughn says. "So she couldn't have done this!"

Rhys levels him with a flat look. "You were my best friend, and you betrayed me. How is this any different?"

Vaughn all but shrinks in on himself, deflating, mouth opening to retort before he just closes it and shakes his head, looking away.

"Think about it, Vaughn," Rhys says, bit more gently. "What did she say, before Vasquez first found us in the desert?"

"She said that she was…" Vaughn's eyes close. "She was tracking us, and that she'd send something to us if she could. And then…"

"Then Vasquez landed right on us," Rhys finishes for him. "Kind of lucky, huh? For him to just know where we were. Knew our exactly location to the point he could moonshot his car on us. We had to jump out of the way, even."

"Okay, yeah…" Vaughn sighs, opening his eyes again to glare down at the ground. "That's kind of suspicious, now that you mention it. But maybe Vasquez stole the data from her! We don't know she betrayed us!"

Rhys frowns. "I mean, I guess you're right. He could have done that, but I just…" Something in his gut just tells him to expect the worst. That Yvette has betrayed them, just like Vaughn betrayed him. Because she is Hyperion through-and-through, and if Vasquez offered her the same deal as him and Vaughn – then she would readily accept it. She's not the one stuck on the ground, after all.

It feels wrong, expecting the worst from such a close friend… but he'd rather expect the worst and be happily surprised when he's proved wrong, or be prepared for the possibility he is right and she is, in fact, a traitor.

Either way, he's going to have to reboot his system and lock her out.

"This is gonna suck," he mutters, mostly to himself.

"What is?" Fiona asks.

"I have to reboot, so to speak. To lock out her access."

"And uh… how does that work, exactly?"

Rhys shrugs. "It's a process."

It usually involves a technician, opening his port and manually making him reboot. Sometimes his cybernetics will reboot on their own, during a Hyperion update, but usually there's ample fore-warning so he's not doing anything vital when half of him stops working.

"I got ya there, kiddo," Jack says.

It's all the warning he gets before a finger touches his port and everything goes dark.

He doesn't even feel his body crumple to the ground.


End file.
